Afghan politician Abdullah Abdullah withdrew Sunday from the upcoming runoff election, saying he believes the second round would be as fraudulent as the first.
"I want this to be an example for the future so that no one again tries to use fraud to abuse the rights of the Afghan people," Abdullah told reporters.
Abdullah's withdrawal was not expected to change plans for the November 7 runoff election, and ensures the re-election of President Hamid Karzai if the voting proceeds as scheduled.
Azizullah Lodin, the president of Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission, said Sunday an announcement on holding the runoff would be made Monday.
In a statement, Karzai's campaign spokesman said the president would respect whatever decision the IEC makes about whether to hold the election.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/11/01/afghanistan.election/index.html
