AFGHAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES
Within the pack of presidential candidates, there are three front-runners that have the greatest chance of becoming the next president of Afghanistan. All the candidates are promising a future of stability and growth despite a weak economy and constant militant bomb attacks. Each candidate has a symbol to help illiterate voters differentiate between them.
ABDULLAH ABDULLAH
Abdullah Abdullah is an eye doctor who served as outgoing President Hamid Karzai's first forgein minister. His father is Pashtun and his mother is Tajik. He placed second in the 2009 presidential elections.
ZALMAI RASOUL
Zalmai Rasoul is a Pashtun. He is the former head of the National Security Council and was foreign minister.
ASHRAF GHANI
Ashraf Ghani is a former World bank executive and former finance minister. He is a Pashtun.
MOHAMMAD DAUD SULTANZOY
Mohammad Daud Sultanzoy is a Pashtun from Ghazni province. He spent more than two decades working as a pilot for United Airlines.
QUTBUDDIN HILAL
Qutbuddin Hilal is running as an independent and has never been part of a post-2001 Afghan government. He is a member of Hizb-e Islami, a group that fought alongside the Taliban.
GUL AGHA SHERZAI
Gul Agha Sherzai resigned as governor of Nangarhar to run in the election. He fought as a mujahedin commander against the governent of President Mohammad Najibullah.
ABDUL RAB RASOUL SAYYAF
Abdul Rab Rasoul Sayyaf is leader of the Dawat Party and a member of parliament from Kabul. He is a Pashtun and an influential religious scholar.
HEDAYAT AMIN ARSALA
Hedayat Amin Arsala served as a senior minister in the Afghan government and held a variety of other posts. He was the first Afghan to join the World Bank in 1969 and spent 18 years working there.