KABUL: Afghanistan is due to announce the results of its first-round presidential elections tomorrow, with former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah and ex-World Bank economist Ashraf Ghani set to go through to a run-off vote.
Full results from the April 5 election were released late last month, but the final declaration will include the outcome of weeks of deliberation over fraud complaints. The preliminary results showed Abdullah secured 44.9 percent of the first-round vote, with Ghani on 31.5 percent.
As none of the eight candidates appear to have gained more than 50 percent, a run-off between the two leading names is required as Afghanistan undergoes its first democratic transfer of power.
Noor Mohammad Noor, spokesman for the Independent Election Commission (IEC), said it hoped to stick with the election timeline and publish the final results on Wednesday. “If there is to be a run-off, we will announce the date on the same day,” he said.
Afghan officials and Kabul-based diplomats say June 14 has been pencilled in for the head-to-head election that will choose President Hamid Karzai’s successor as US-led troops withdraw from Afghanistan by the end of the year.
Abdullah received a major boost with the endorsement of third-placed Zalmai Rassoul, a close ally of Karzai.
AFP
