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By Amy Calfas
License: Open JSTOR Collection
Civic engagement in Afghanistan is at an all-time high. Despite allegations of electoral fraud during the 2014 Afghan presidential election, the process set new precedents for the roles that the country’s vibrant civil society groups can play as the country transitions to a new national unity government following months of delay. According to the Independent Election Commission (IEC), 37.6 percent of voters in the presidential runoff were women, at least thirty thousand more than in the 2009 elections. Female voter turnout was so high that many polling stations for women ran out of ballots. Most important, women campaigned for political positions at unprecedented levels. Dr. Habiba Sarobi, who served as Afghanistan’s first female governor in Bamiyan province, became the first woman to run on a vice presidential ticket, with third-place candidate Zalmay Rassoul. At the provincial level, the IEC reports that “nearly 300 women ran for provincial posts in 2014,” comprising 12 percent of the candidates. Even in Kandahar province, one of the country’s most conservative, women filled one in ten spots on the ballot.
Key words: Afghan women, Civic engagement, Electoral fraud, Independent Election Commission (IEC), Gender-based violence, Women’s rights, Political participation