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Afghan election officials count ballot papers after polls closed in Kabul on June 14.
Afghan election officials count ballot papers after polls closed in Kabul on June 14.

Live Blog: Election Day In Afghanistan

Latest News

-- The vote count continues, as does the investigation into hundreds of claims of vote fraud. Final preliminary results are expected on July 2, and final results on July 22.

-- Many media refrained from reporting violence during the vote, but officials said June 15 that more than 270 Taliban attacks were recorded, resulting in the deaths of 50 civilians.

-- In one attack, a roadside bomb exploded beside a minibus that was carrying Afghan election workers home, killing 10 adults and a child.

-- Taliban militants severed the voting fingers of 11 voters in Herat Province.

-- The Independent Electoral Commission initially said that there were signs that voter turnout exceeded 7 million, putting it roughly on par with the first-round vote in April.

-- Officials said that, of those who turned out, 38 percent were women and 62 percent were men.

* NOTE: Times are stated according to local time in Kabul
13:05 12.6.2014
12:52 12.6.2014
Boats for Landlocked Afghanistan?

Interesting news from Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR).

Only problem is Afghanistan is landlocked.
12:24 12.6.2014
Girl Power

Lieutenant Sara, an Afghan female commando, speaks to Radio Free Afghanistan.

"As an Afghan woman, I am ready to secure polling stations so my mothers and sisters can cast their votes."

Election day will fall on the same day as Mother's Day in Afghanistan.
12:10 12.6.2014
12:03 12.6.2014
United Nations

Radio Free Afghanistan reports:

The United Nations' special representative in Afghanistan, Jan Kubis, told reporters in Kabul today that the two presidential hopefuls should urge their supporters not to commmit fraud during Saturday's vote.

"The candidates should respect the work of the election management bodies. [They should] avoid jumping to conclusions as it would have a negative impact on the sentiments of Afghans."

"Give the time to the election management bodies to do their work."

"The international community is impartial. It is interested in good outcome of the elections."

11:37 12.6.2014
Relief

Some Kabul residents we talked to on the street said they were relieved that the election would soon be over. This man says the election has proved a distraction, and that other pressing issues facing the country need attention, including unemployment and price hikes on everyday goods.
11:33 12.6.2014
We have experienced some technical issues. But we are now back up and running.
11:32 12.6.2014
The presidential candidates have focused their campaigns on "economic development, responsible governance ... and striking pacts with former rivals and ethnic power brokers," according to this article from "The Los Angeles Times."

But the paper notes there has been a "virtual silence" when it comes to the hot-button issue of how to end hostilities with the Taliban. And despite the controversy it has caused in the United States, Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani made no mention of the Taliban's recent release of U.S. Army Sergeant Bow Bergdahl in exchange for the so-called Taliban Five.
09:32 12.6.2014
08:30 12.6.2014

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