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McKeon Welcomes Runoff in Afghanistan Presidential Election
Washington, D.C---U.S. House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Howard P. "Buck" McKeon (R-CA) today welcomed news that the two leading contenders to be the President of Afghanistan have accepted a runoff election. The Independent Electoral Commission today certified the August 20 election results with no candidate receiving more than fifty percent of the vote. Current Afghan President Hamid Karzai and former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah will square off in the November 7 runoff vote.
McKeon's statement follows:
“Today’s announcement that Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah have accepted a runoff election is welcome news for Afghans and the international community. By accepting the Independent Electoral Commission’s certification, both of these gentlemen are putting the rule of law above personal interests.
“No democracy is perfect, but all democracies must strive to ensure elections are legitimate and each person's vote is weighted the same. The November 7th runoff has the potential to assure Afghans that their votes are, in fact, legitimate and advance the goals of all Afghans.
"The ball is now in the court of our President and Commander-in-Chief. His commander on the ground has provided an assessment of the situation in Afghanistan and has requested additional troops in order to implement the President's March counterinsurgency strategy.
"Additionally, the President's Secretary of Defense warned against delaying a strategy decision for Afghanistan as we wait for Afghans to widely accept their government as legitimate.
"Republicans believe the President has already clearly articulated a strategy that is grounded in sound counterinsurgency doctrine. Now is the time for the President to lead our nation and the international community by recommitting to a robust counterinsurgency strategy and providing General McChrystal the resources he needs to implement that strategy. It has already been two weeks since the President told Members of Congress that his decision would be timely. My hope and expectation is that the President will make a decision to provide additional resources soon and stick with it.”"