Non sequitur non pareil

From the NYT (10/10/04) comes this little gem attesting to the truly revolutionary nature of the afghan "elections". Setting the background, the piece notes chaos in the process occasioned by concern over voter fraud. Our . . . the US's . . . man in Kabul, Karzai, comes backs with the ultimate zinger:

``Who is more important, these 15 candidates, or the millions of people who
turned out today to vote?'' Karzai said at a news conference. ``Both myself and
all these 15 candidates should respect our people -- because in the dust and
snow and rain, they waited for hours and hours to vote.''

Is it just me, or is the presence of even vaguely legitimate candidates a prerequisite for an election that could be considered anything but a done deal, soviet style?