Karzai widens lead in Afghan vote
KABUL: Afghan President Hamid Karzai widened his lead over his top challenger yesterday after Afghan officials released more partial vote results. The president's new total pushed him closer to the 50 percent threshold that would allow him to avoid a two-man runoff.
The Independent Election Commission released its second batch of results from last week's presidential election. More will be released in coming days, and final certified results won't be ready until at least mid-September, after the dozens of serious complaints of fraud have been investigated.
Low voter turnout and the fraud allegations have cast a pall over the election. Top challenger Abdullah Abdullah has accused Karzai of widespread rigging, including ballot stuffing and voter intimidation, claims Karzai's camp has denied.
The latest returns boost Karzai's standing to 44.8 percent. Abdullah now has 35.1 percent. The count is based on returns from 17 percent of polling stations nationwide, meaning the results could still change dramatically.
Before the election commission released results yesterday, Ramazan Bashardost - a candidate likely to come in third - stood up at the news conference and told officials they were breaking the law by announcing results before the Electoral Complaints Commission carries out its work.
Millions of Afghans went to the polls last Thursday to vote in the country's second-ever direct presidential election. Militants launched dozens of attacks across the country, shutting down some polling sites and appearing to dampen turnout.
The Taliban yesterday denied any responsibility for a major bombing that killed at least 43 people and wounded 65 in southern Afghanistan's largest city just after dark on Tuesday.
The explosion ripped through a central area of Kandahar two hours after the first batch of election results were released. Rescue workers were still pulling out injured people early yesterday. The blast occurred in a district that includes UN facilities and an Afghan intelligence office.
AP
(China Daily 08/27/2009 page12)
