Haiti’s government has announced new election dates as the armed gangs who terrorize the country continue to fight against Haitian police and soldiers, who are now backed by the recent arrival of more than 2,000 troops from El Salvador.

The Provisional Electoral Council said late Wednesday that the first round of general elections will be held next July 18 and the second round on Oct. 4.

Haiti has not held elections in more than a decade and is run by an unelected prime minister. The presidency has been vacant since President Jovenel Moïse was killed in 2021.

The council said it expects to publish the final candidate list, including those running for the presidency or the Senate, by mid-January, with May 20 marking the end of voter registration. Among the presidential hopefuls are former presidents Michel Martelly, Claude Joseph and Jocelerme Privert, along with a former president of Haiti's Chamber of Deputies, Gary Bodeau, and Public Prosecutor Jean Ernest Muscadin.…