Afghan Voter Registration Passes 7 Million Mark

Afghan Voter Registration Passes 7 Million Mark, UN Reports

More than 7 million Afghans – over two-thirds of the estimated electorate – have now registered to vote in the country’s upcoming elections, and the gender gap is closing as a greater percentage of women continue to sign up, the United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA) announced today.

Briefing reporters in Kabul, UNAMA spokesman David Singh said provisional figures show that 7,175,651 Afghans have registered so far. But this figure is considered incomplete because it leaves out results from remote regions of the country.

More than 40 per cent of the registered voters are female - the highest proportion since registration began last December. In total, 4.3 million men are registered and almost 2.9 million women.

Afghanistan's electoral authorities have said they are uncertain of the exact number of eligible voters, but the most recent estimate places the total at about 9.5 million. More than two decades of civil war and harsh Taliban rule, followed by more war and slow reconstruction, mean the country has not had a formal census since 1979.

Last week it was announced that the presidential election will be held on 9 October, while national and local parliamentary polls will be conducted next March.

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