Afghan Run
Off: Karzai, Abdullah Set For November 7th
The
two leading presidential candidates in the last election in
Afghanistan, incumbent Hamid Karzai and Dr. Abdullah Abdullah
have agreed to a November 7th run-off poll.
This followed the Independent Election Commission’s order for a
run –off as a report presented evidence of fraud associated with
the last presidential election.
According to findings by the election commission, President
Hamid Karzai's votes were below 50 percent as stipulated in the
constitution.
Karzai accepted the finding and agreed to a second round vote.
The announcement came two months after the first round vote and
follows weeks of political uncertainty.
Need For Run Off
The Chairman of the Independent Election Commission, Azizullah
Lodin, said the commission, which organized the August 20 vote,
did not want to "leave the people of Afghanistan in uncertainty"
any longer.
Karzai announced his acceptance of the findings at a press
conference alongside U.S. Senator John Kerry and Kai Eide, the
head of the UN mission in Afghanistan.
The possibility of a runoff emerged on Monday after a
U.N.-backed panel threw out a third of Karzai's votes from the
August 20 ballot, pushing his totals below the 50 percent
threshold needed for a first round victory and setting the stage
for a run-off against former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah.
Former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah had earlier said in an
interview that he would welcome a run off election any day, any
time, for peaceful resolution of the impeding political logjam.
The UN and US President Barack Obama have applauded the
political courage of Hamid Karzai for accepting the run off.
AP/Qasim/Yinka
