The Haitian government has announced it is ready to issue a diplomatic passport to former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, opening the way for his return home from almost seven years in exile in South Africa. Aristide was ousted in 2004 in a U.S.-backed coup. In 1990, the former Catholic priest became Haiti’s first freely elected president, and he remains very popular. Meanwhile, Haitian election officials are expected to end months of political uncertainty on Wednesday by announcing definitive presidential vote results and revealing who will be on the final runoff ballot next month. On Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton traveled to Haiti and said President René Préval’s chosen successor Jude Célestin should withdraw from the runoff vote amid evidence of election fraud in his favor in the first round in November.