World / disputed election Karzai Widens Lead in New Poll Returns He's up 45% to 35%, but only 17% of votes have been counted By Newser Editors and Wire Services Posted Aug 26, 2009 1:47 PM CDT Copied An Afghan boy walks past destructions caused by Tuesday's explosion in the city of Kandahar province, south of Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009. (Allauddin Khan) President Hamid Karzai extended his lead over his top challenger in Afghanistan's presidential election, but he remained short of the 50% threshold that would allow him to avoid a two-man runoff. With only 17% of the vote counted, Karzai has 44.8%, while Abdullah Abdullah has 35.1%. The count is proceeding slowly, and final certified results may not be ready until mid-September, after dozens of complaints of fraud have been investigated. (More disputed election stories.) Report an error