Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan

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Established by the Afghan Constitution, the Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan (IEC) states its vision as "strengthen[ing] the new established democracy of Afghanistan through conducting free and fair elections, striving for quality and accountability in delivering electoral services and promoting Afghans trust and confidence on electoral process, building a sustainable organization with the ability to deliver elections independently.:[1]

## 2009 Afghanistan presidential election[edit]

The head of the commission, Daoud Ali Najafi, told the candidates to stop speculating: "If someone's observers have estimated the numbers, it doesn't mean it is final...We are the reliable source." The Commission will report preliminary results on August 25. [2] Abdullah asked for calm while the count is finalized and the grievance process can come into effect if needed. He said he would prevent his followers from taking to the streets if he lost[3] Peter Galbraith, the deputy head of the UN Mission to Afghanistan, who was fired for disagreements with mission head Kai Eide, said of this Commission, "Despite its name, the commission is subservient to Karzai, who appointed its seven members. Even so, the international role was extensive. The United States and other Western nations paid the more than $300 million to hold the vote, and U.N. technical staff took the lead in organizing much of the process, including printing ballot papers, distributing election materials and designing safeguards against fraud."[4]

## 2011 Parliamentary elections[edit]

In 2010 and 2011, there was a confrontation between the authority of the President and the IEC. President Hamid Karzai had appointed a special court to investigate allegations of electoral improprieties in his political base, south Afghanistan. He had refused to seat the Parliament until the court reported its results, which had already delayed its seating by five months. It was the Parliamentary position that the IEC ruling was adequate certification, and to allow a Presidentially-named court to override the decision of a Constitutionally-prescribed body would be a violation of their oath to respect the Constitution.

A compromise was reached when Karzai agreed to seat the Parliament, but the Parliament agreed to let the court continue investigating. [5] The compromise does not rule out future charges for violating election rules.

## References[edit]

1. ↑ Vision and Mission, Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan
2. ↑ Anand Gopal and Matthew Rosenberg (22 August 2009), "Afghan Contenders Claim Leads", Wall Street Journal
3. ↑ Jim Michaels (22 August 2009), "Abdullah prepares for election results, challenges, uproar", USA Today
4. ↑ Peter W. Galbraith (4 October 2009), What I Saw at the Afghan Election, Washington Post
5. ↑ Josh Boak and Joshua Partlow (22 January 2011), "Ending standoff, Karzai agrees to inaugurate Afghan parliament", Washington Post