Hamid Karzai’s campaign manager claimed victory on Friday in the country’s presidential election, saying there would be no need for a run-off.
”The Afghan people dared rockets, bombs and intimidation and came out to vote,” President Hamid Karzai said after polls closed on Thursday.
Millions of Afghans went to the polls on Thursday, defying Taliban threats of violence and sporadic attacks across the country to choose a president.
Pride mixed with trepidation as Afghans voted on Thursday, an oddly formal atmosphere counterbalanced by fear the Taliban would disrupt the poll.
The turnout of voters in Afghanistan’s south will be crucial in judging the credibility of Thursday’s presidential elections.
Gunmen stormed a bank building in the Afghan capital and battled police for hours on Wednesday on the eve of a cliffhanger election.
A Taliban rocket struck the grounds of Afghanistan’s presidential palace on Tuesday, just two days before incumbent Hamid Karzai seeks re-election.
The Taliban on Sunday threatened for the first time to attack Afghan polling stations, escalating their bid to derail key elections.
Guinea-Bissau’s election will go to a second round after Sunday’s vote failed to produce a clear winner, the electoral commission said on Thursday.