Afghan election

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Looks Like a Runoff in Afghan Presidential Election

Abdullah Abdullah in the lead, according to preliminary results

(Newser) - Full preliminary results released today in Afghanistan's presidential election show former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah won the most votes but not the majority needed to avoid a runoff. Abdullah garnered 44.9% of the vote, putting him ahead of ex-Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, who came in second with...

Women MPs Brawl During Karzai Impeachment Talks

Majority of MPs seeking to remove president

(Newser) - The relationship between Hamid Karzai and the Afghan parliament has reached breaking point, and so have the tempers of some lawmakers. Two female members of parliament came to blows yesterday as the chamber discussed kicking the president out of office, reports the New York Times . One woman threw a shoe,...

All Alone, Karzai Twists in Political Wind

Allies are deserting Afghan leader after failed stalling tactic

(Newser) - Afghanistan’s new parliament was finally sworn in yesterday, much to Hamid Karzai’s chagrin. The Afghan president’s failed bid to delay the new parliament’s arrival is the latest in a string of political miscues that have left Karzai in a precarious position, diplomats, analysts, and Afghan lawmakers...

Karzai Government Slams 'Premature' Election Results

Could just be a move to influence results from a final, lingering province

(Newser) - The results are in and the government of President Hamid Karzai is none too pleased: As the United Nations stepped up to endorse Afghanistan's long-awaited parliamentary election results yesterday, Karzai's government promised to challenge the outcome. The New York Times reports that Karzai can count on about 100 of the...

Chaos Surrounds Afghan's 'Final' Election Results

For starters, votes in one province can't be counted

(Newser) - The main electoral body in Afghanistan released today what it says are the final results of September's parliamentary election, but results for an entire province were withheld because rampant violence, intimidation, and voter fraud made a fair tally impossible. As the results were announced, angry supporters of disqualified candidates staged...

Afghan Elections: A Corrupt 'Free-for-All'

Widespread fraud reported in nearly a third of provinces

(Newser) - From stuffing ballot boxes to arresting election workers to, incredibly, haggling over the sales price of a vote, Afghanistan's election is so rife with corruption and fraud that the results are questionable in one-third of its provinces, reports the New York Times. And as a test of Afghanistan's nascent democracy,...

Just in Time for Afghan Election: Fake Voter Cards

Voter fraud feared as elections near

(Newser) - Printers in a Pakistan city near the Afghan border say they have produced thousands of fake voter registration cards at the request of Afghan politicians for use in that country's parliamentary elections on Saturday. The cards, some shown to the AP, add to evidence that fraud could undermine the elections...

Karzai Becoming a Paranoid, Unreliable Ally

Insiders say Afghan president thinks US wants to stay indefinitely

(Newser) - Tensions are mounting between the US and the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who appears to be becoming an increasingly unreliable ally. “Karzai was enraged,” an insider tells the New York Times of Obama's decision to rescind a White House invitation to Karzai over his decision to...

US to Karzai: Clean Up Corruption or ... Nothing
US to Karzai: Clean Up Corruption or ... Nothing
No Leverage dept.
Nov 12, 2009 11:59 AM CST

US to Karzai: Clean Up Corruption or ... Nothing

Threatening troop withdrawal like threatening suicide: 'stupid'

(Newser) - President Obama is gravely serious about pressuring Hamid Karzai to reel in Afghan corruption—but has almost zero “or else” options. The most logical threat to entice Karzai to clean up his government, pulling out US troops, is “stupid,” a former ambassador tells the New York Times...

Runoff Canceled; Karzai Named Victor
 Runoff Canceled; 
 Karzai Named Victor 

UPDATED
Nov 2, 2009 7:48 AM CST

Runoff Canceled; Karzai Named Victor

Second term a done deal after opponent dropped out

(Newser) - Afghanistan's Karzai-appointed Independent Election Commission proclaimed President Hamid Karzai the victor of the war-ravaged nation's tumultuous ballot today, canceling a planned runoff two and a half months after a fraud-marred first round. The news came a day after his challenger, Abdullah Abdullah, dropped out of the runoff, and hours after...

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