Afghan President Ashraf Ghani appears to have narrowly won a second term, according to preliminary results from September's balloting that were announced Sunday, although his main challenger rejected the outcome as illegitimate.
![Afghan president appears to win new term in initial results](https://media.zenfs.com/en/ap.org/256c3ebc653a92d2142f4dff158fa8b3)
If the outcome stands despite the complaints of ballot fraud, it could give Ghani the authority he has sought to demand a leading role in peace talks with the
Taliban in the country devastated by decades of war.
In a nationally televised address from the presidential palace later in the day, Ghani claimed victory over his main rival, Abdullah Abdullah, who serves as Afghanistan’s chief executive in a fragile national unity government..