Wyclef Jean Hiding in Haiti After Threats Over Presidential Run

The former Fugees star, who is awaiting word from the island nation's electoral officials on whether he is eligible to run, is in an undisclosed location in his homeland, he told The Associated Press. He would not say who is behind the threats.

If approved, Jean would be one of 32 candidates vying to run nation ravaged by a Jan. 12 earthquake that killed an estimated 220,000. A list of candidates cleared to seek the office is due to be released on Friday.

We await the [Electoral Commission's] decision but the laws of the Haitian constitution must be respected," Jean told The Associated Press in an email in which he also said he is hiding under threat of death.

His lawyers were at the commission's headquarters seeking to argue his case, he said. If approved, Jean will be a front runner, but the fact he has lived in the U.S. since he was just nine could void his candidacy.