AFGHANISTAN: Karzai and Warlords Mount Massive Vote Fraud Scheme

Analysis by Gareth Porter, Inter Press Service

WASHINGTON, Aug 19 (IPS) – Afghanistan’s presidential election has long been viewed by U.S. officials as a key to conferring legitimacy on the Afghan government, but Afghan President Hamid Karzai and his powerful warlord allies have planned to commit large-scale electoral fraud that could have the opposite effect.

Two U.S.-financed polls published during the past week showed support for Karzai falls well short of the 51 percent of the vote necessary to avoid a runoff election. A poll by Glevum Associates showed Karzai at 36 percent, and a survey by the International Republican Institute had him at 44 percent of the vote.

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Tags: Afghanistan, FEFA, President Hamid Karzai, presidential election, vote fraud scheme, warlords