Afghanistan: Endorsements Keep Rolling For Abdullah

A number of public leaders and political parties joined the ranks of those backing presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah on Friday. The running mate of former presidential candidate and President Hamid Karzai's brother, Qayoum Karzai, was among them.

With only a few days left for the runoff campaigns, the endorsements Dr. Abdullah received this week came at a critical time as he and his opponent Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai head into the home stretch of this year's presidential election.

Wahidullah Shahrani, Qayoum Karzai's First Vice President, was perhaps the most high-profile individual to endorse Abdullah on Friday.

"I, personally, and with a number of the Turks of Afghanistan, announce my full support to Dr. Abdullah and will stay alongside him until the end," Shahrani said.

But a number of prominent political parties with influence across the country also joined Abdullah's cause. Hizb-e-Wahdat-e-Islami Party, under the leadership of Mohammad Akbari; Shuray-e-Etefaq Wa Dawat, under the leadership of Kahlid Pashton; and Shuray-e-Ayenda Sazan Afghanistan and Shrayy-e-Sulh Warzesh, under the leadership of the Afghan Olympic Committee Chair Mohammad Zahir Akhbar were among the groups that announced endorsements Friday.

"After series of consultations, we decided to support Dr. Abdullah and his two vices, engineer Mohammad Khan and Mohammad Mohaqeq," Hizb-e-Wahdat-e-Islami Afghanistan leader Mohammad Akbari said.

Abdullah's Second Vice-President Mohammad Mohaqeq welcomed the endorsements and urged Afghans to participate in the June 14 runoff as they did for the first round on April 5.

Mohaqeq also pledged to enhance Afghanistan's relations with the international community if his team wins. "I promise to work for the great religion of Islam and will forge close relations with the region and the world," he said.

Meanwhile, in southern Kandahar province, Shuray-e-Etefaq wa Dawat, under the leadership of Khalid Pashton, announced support for Abdullah. The endorsement, coming from an influential group in one of the country's predominately Pashtun areas, poses a challenge to those who have said this year's election will be determined by the country's traditional ethnic politics.