Afghanistan may delay announcing presidential election results as fraud complaints have yet to be processed, officials said Tuesday, though a run-off vote is expected to be held next month.
Full results from the April 5 election were released late last month, and the final declaration that was due out on Wednesday will factor in the outcome of weeks of deliberation over fraud allegations.
The preliminary results showed former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah in the lead on 44.9 percent of the first-round vote, with ex-World Bank economist Ashraf Ghani on 31.5 percent.
None of the eight candidates appeared to have gained more than 50 percent, triggering a run-off between the two top names as Afghanistan undergoes its first democratic transfer of power.
"We are waiting to receive the conclusion (of the complaints commission)," Noor Mohammad Noor, spokesman for the Independent Election Commission, told AFP late Tuesday.
"The decision to announce or delay the final results depends on when we receive it, and details of the decision since we maintain the right to object to it.
"There is still a chance for the final results to be announced tomorrow, otherwise there will be a delay."
The Independent Electoral Complaints Commission (IECC) said it expected to deliver its work shortly.
"If we need more time to finalize our work, it is for the sake of more transparency and to have a fair and just outcome," its spokesman told a press conference in Kabul.
Afghan officials and Kabul-based diplomats say June 14 has been penciled in for the head-to-head election to choose President Hamid Karzai's successor as U.S.-led troops withdraw from Afghanistan by the end of the year.
Full results from the April 5 election were released late last month, and the final declaration that was due out on Wednesday will factor in the outcome of weeks of deliberation over fraud allegations.
The preliminary results showed former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah in the lead on 44.9 percent of the first-round vote, with ex-World Bank economist Ashraf Ghani on 31.5 percent.
None of the eight candidates appeared to have gained more than 50 percent, triggering a run-off between the two top names as Afghanistan undergoes its first democratic transfer of power.
"We are waiting to receive the conclusion (of the complaints commission)," Noor Mohammad Noor, spokesman for the Independent Election Commission, told AFP late Tuesday.
"The decision to announce or delay the final results depends on when we receive it, and details of the decision since we maintain the right to object to it.
"There is still a chance for the final results to be announced tomorrow, otherwise there will be a delay."
The Independent Electoral Complaints Commission (IECC) said it expected to deliver its work shortly.
"If we need more time to finalize our work, it is for the sake of more transparency and to have a fair and just outcome," its spokesman told a press conference in Kabul.
Afghan officials and Kabul-based diplomats say June 14 has been penciled in for the head-to-head election to choose President Hamid Karzai's successor as U.S.-led troops withdraw from Afghanistan by the end of the year.
