Polls close in Afghanistan’s parliamentary elections

18 Sep 2010

Polls close in Afghanistan’s parliamentary elections

18 September 2010 - Polling centres across Afghanistan for the parliamentary elections closed by 4:30 pm local time on Saturday, according to the Afghan Independent Election Commission (IEC), which was responsible for conducting the polls.

 

By midday, 1,689,457 people had voted in 2,627 polling centres countrywide, or 32 percent of those who were eligible to vote at these centres, IEC Chairman Fazal Ahmad Manawi told a press conference in the capital Kabul. He did not give further details.

Throughout the day there were reports of security incidents from many parts of the country, though with detailed information yet to come from many remote parts of the country it will be some time before the full picture is clear.

Residents heard explosions in Kabul just hours before the polling centres opened but there were no immediate reports of casualties. There were also reports of violence in various parts of Afghanistan throughout the day.

Before the polls, the IEC had acknowledged that security incidents or other factors may force polling centres in some areas to close.

More than 2,500 candidates are vying for the 249 seats in Afghanistan's lower house of parliament, known as the Wolesi Jirga (the people's house), including almost 400 women candidates. Mr. Manawi also said that 369,813 candidate agents, party agents and election observers had been accredited with the IEC to observe and monitor the polls, including 88,507 female observers. This figure includes more than 1,000 international observers, and more than 300 national and 300 international media.

The IEC is due to give its final press conference at 8pm local time, where it is expected to update figures related to voter turnout and other election-day details.

The parliamentary elections are fully Afghan organized and conducted. The IEC is responsible for conducting the parliamentary elections. The Electoral Complaints Commission adjudicates complaints of electoral offences. The United Nations is providing technical and logistical support to these two independent Afghan electoral institutions, in response to a formal request by the Government in January 2010, through the UNDP-ELECT programme. UNAMA supports the elections as part of Afghanistan's wider political process and its support for strengthening of democracy, but UNAMA has no role in implementing, supervising or monitoring the polls.