City
Epaper

Abdullah Abdullah claims victory in Afghan prez race

By IANS | Updated: September 30, 2019 17:56 IST

Afghanistan's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah on Monday claimed victory in the presidential election even as the official vote count was still under way.

Open in App

"We have got the most votes in the election," Abdullah, President Ashraf Ghani's main rival, told reporters in the Afghan capital.

"In the current situation, the elections will not go to a second round and we will form a new government," he said, according to Efe news.

However, the Independent Election Commission said no candidate had the right to announce election results or claim victory.

"It is the responsibility of the Election Commission to (…) announce the primary result," said Habib Rahman Nang, a senior IEC officer, denouncing Abdullah's claim as premature.

He said there was still a long process before the poll panel would announce the final result, after assessing all election-related fraud and rigging complaints.

The voting to elect new the Afghan President was held on Saturday amid violence and Taliban threats.

The preliminary results of the polls will not be known till October 19, with the final count expected to be announced on November 7.

If there is no clear winner or no candidate bags over 50 per cent of the ballots cast, a second round of voting will be held to choose between the two contenders who got the most votes.

Abdullah admitted that the turnout was not "as high as was expected", attributing it to security threats and warnings by militants.

He said that despite the threats, a "significant number" of people had turned out to vote.

This was the fourth time Afghans went to the polls to elect a President since 2001, when the US-led coalition ousted a Taliban regime.

( With inputs from IANS )

Open in App

Related Stories

EntertainmentIsha Koppikar on consistency: This body didn’t change overnight

NationalWhy Bahujan entrepreneurs kept out of India’s biggest public contracts: Rahul Gandhi

BusinessGovt refutes reports of migrants returning home amid LPG crisis

BusinessHoonartek Launches ClearView™ -- The Agentic Decision Layer for the Modern Enterprise

EntertainmentAnna Faris on ‘Scary Movie’: Remember being so scared that I was gonna get fired

International Realted Stories

InternationalStrikes on Iran's infrastructure may hurt civilians more: Atlantic Council

InternationalTrump faces questions over Iran operation as expert flags unmet objectives

InternationalAs deadline looms, Trump might hold off if Iran deal comes to fruition, reports Axios

InternationalS. Korea secures 60 million barrels of alternative oil supplies for May

InternationalIran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei 'unconscious', receiving treatment in Qom, reports Times UK