Community | October 20, 2009 | 7 comments

Afghan commission orders election runoff: Fraud investigation stripped incumbent Karzai of victory

source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33394277/ns/world_news-south_and_central_asia/

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bansheewail
KABUL - Afghanistan's election commission Tuesday ordered a Nov. 7 runoff in the disputed presidential poll after a fraud investigation dropped incumbent Hamid Karzai's votes below 50 percent of the total. Karzai accepted the finding and agreed to a second round vote.

The announcement came two months to the day after the first round vote and follows weeks of political uncertainty at a time when Taliban strength is growing.

The chairman of the Independent Election Commission, Azizullah Lodin, said the commission, which organized the Aug. 20 vote, did not want to "leave the people of Afghanistan in uncertainty" any longer.
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    Community,   Current Tonight,   Afghanistan News,   News_Featured,   1 more
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    News and Politics,  World,  Afghanistan,  Election,  4 more
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7 comments // Afghan commission orders election runoff: Fraud investigation stripped incumbent Karzai of victory

  • Saladin
    • 0
      Saladin  

    • I'm really glad this happened, I was so worried that the U.S. was gonna pussy out and just let Karzai remain in power.

      Hopefully, this will invigorate the Afghan populace.

    • 2 years ago
  • afitzgerald
    • 0
      afitzgerald  

    • From the News blog: "Now, this doesn't mean Karzai won't win again. He may be able to secure a majority without rigging the vote. Or Abdullah Abdullah could come out on top. The real challenge will be to tamp down the flagrant fraud so that Afghanistan's President, whichever of the candidates it might end up being, actually has some legitimacy."

    • 2 years ago
  • J_Jammer
  • OhSee
  • J_Jammer
  • OhSee
    • 0
      OhSee  

    • I agree!! Other successful military campaigns have had the support of local forces who and the desire to be apart of their own freedom. From Black soilders in the Union Army to the military police in Iraq(still iffy I know). Look at the drop in car bombing and suicide bombing in Iraq since the troop reduction. And the increase in the same activities in Afgan region. The highest loss of military troops there has been in the past few months. We do not need to send 40,000 more troops there. Be it fear or respect the locals will never be removed from the Taliban.

    • 2 years ago
  • bansheewail
    • 0
      bansheewail  

    • We should prop-up anything but the taiblan and pull out. If the people choose the Taliban, we should pull out. So, either way, we should get out people out of that meat-grinder. From Ghingus Khan to Mother Russia, the Afghan people and the terrain have proved themselves to be a losing proposition for invading forces. We should start buying all of their poppy crop and build a few schools and hospitals. Education and compassion are the only effective weapons against terror.

    • 2 years ago
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