Afghan president appears to win new term in initial results

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani appears to have narrowly won a second term, according to preliminary results from September’s balloting. If the outcome stands despite the complaints of ballot fraud, it could give Ghani the authority he has sought to demand a leading role in peace talks with the Taliban in the country devastated by decades of war.

In a nationally televised address from the presidential palace, Ghani claims victory over his main rival, Abdullah Abdullah, who serves as Afghanistan’s chief executive in a fragile national unity government..

“We will connect and unite all Afghans,” Ghani says. “We will end the crisis and all divisions by building a responsible government.”

Ghani won 923,868 votes, or 50.64 percent in the September 28 balloting, according to the long overdue preliminary results announced by Hawa Alam Nuristani, head of the Independent Election Commission. She says Abdullah won 720,990 votes, 39.52%. The results have been repeatedly delayed amid accusations of misconduct and technical problems, and Nuristani did not say when final results would be announced.

— AP