Dominican Leader Sworn In

Joaquin Balaguer was sworn in to a seventh term as president Tuesday, facing a reduced two-year term because of allegations of electoral fraud.

Balaguer, 87, has been president of the Dominican Republic for 20 of the past 28 years. He agreed last week to reduce his term from four years after opposition politicians and international observers accused him of fraud in the May elections.

Balaguer originally agreed to a 1 1/2-year term, but Congress voted Sunday to set his term at two years.

The Congress vote touched off an outcry from the opposition, which claims that 200,000 people were blocked from voting in the May 16 elections--nine times Balaguer’s 22,000-vote victory margin.