The announcement of preliminary results of the presidential ballot has been delayed due to a delay in transfer of election data from biometric devices to the main IEC server, an official said on Saturday.
In line with the election timetable, the preliminary results of the September 28 polls were expected to be announced on Saturday.
Abdul Aziz Ibrahimi, deputy spokesman for IEC, told Pajhwok Afghan News the panel members held a consultative meeting to discuss the delay.
He said the commission did not want to sacrifice transparency for the sake of a hasty announcement of the poll outcome.
Sifting valid votes from fraudulent ones and a possible audit of ballots might take more time and announcement of results could be delayed, the official suggested.
IEC Secretary Habibur Rahman Nang said: “We will share our report with IEC bosses by the end of the day and they will share it with the public.”
