--- title: The Afghan Election: The Man Who Could Upset Karzai | TIME description: The campaign of the former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah has gained momentum in the last few days. Can he force a run-off? canonical: https://time.com/video/I6fwFpaw/ og:title: The Afghan Election: The Man Who Could Upset Karzai og:description: The campaign of the former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah has gained momentum in the last few days. Can he force a run-off? og:url: https://time.com/video/I6fwFpaw/ og:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/I6fwFpaw/poster.jpg?width=720 og:type: video.other twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Afghan Election: The Man Who Could Upset Karzai twitter:description: The campaign of the former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah has gained momentum in the last few days. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: The Afghan Election: The Man Who Could Upset Karzai [Watch (HLS stream): The Afghan Election: The Man Who Could Upset Karzai](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/I6fwFpaw.m3u8) (4:51)  _Published 2009-08-19. The campaign of the former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah has gained momentum in the last few days. Can he force a run-off?_ --- Jul 27, 2023 1:13 PM UTC --- ## More From This Series [All Videos](https://time.com/video/) [Former British Prime Minister David Cameron Returns as Foreign Secretary in Government Shakeup](/video/EKLmCmlH/) ### Former British Prime Minister David Cameron Returns as Foreign Secretary in Government Shakeup [Know Right Now: Afghan Forces Retake Kunduz From Taliban](/video/fgdUe6nA/) ### Know Right Now: Afghan Forces Retake Kunduz From Taliban [Kerry Promises Afghan Election Audit](/video/6v06aAIj/) ### Kerry Promises Afghan Election Audit --- ## Transcript >> As the campaign season for Afghanistan's second presidential election winds down, Abdullah Abdullah, the top challenger, is spoiling for an upset. In the months leading up to the vote, President Hamid Karzai traded favors for the support of former warlords, making him the man to beat.- [ Foreign language ] >> Abdullah commends a strong Tajik base in the north, and his campaign has gain ground in recent weeks. But, the force to run off with President Karzai, he needs to attract voters from across the ethnic divide. So, lately he's been traveling like never before. On this day, he was scheduled to appear at two major rallies hosted by ethnic Hazara communities in Central Afghanistan. >> They say that without big change, this country will be lost. >> Historically, the Hazara minority has been the country's most oppressed ethnic group. This election, some consider them to be a swing vote. >> The first thing that I did was [ unk ] in sitting in Kabul, getting amongst people right into the crowd. Okay? So, the people feel you, the people see, the people are shocked, that there's somebody which will stand, and they speak for us. They are amongst us. They are for us. >> The former foreign minister receives a heartily welcome in the city of [ unk ].- [ Foreign language ] >> A cow was a slaughtered to honor his arrival.- [ Foreign language ] >> Under a hot mid day sun, the candidate makes his pitch, promising more jobs and better government services for the underdeveloped region.- [ Foreign language ] >> Local resident [ unk ] says Abdullah is a light for Afghanistan, a good man who should be trusted. [ unk ] is more skeptical.- [ Foreign language ] >> Many politicians have come and gone with promises not kept, he says. We must see what he does.- [ Foreign language ] >> This is one of the most deprived parts of the country, and their basic demands have been ignored in the past few years. At the same time, in terms of education, this is like an example of college education and so on and so forth. So, there is a lot of potential in this area for the betterment of life for the people.- [ Foreign language ] >> People are really thinking for themselves, right? Not just what their leader says. >> Yeah. [ unk ]--- [ Foreign language ] >> That's what I like to say. >> Let's say, in a credible process, I don't work, let's say. Yes, I'll accept that. But, the national movement which has been created today, which has-- which have crossed people, have crossed the ethnic line; yes, the [ unk ] life, the religious life, linguistic life. The votes of these people are counted. That's all that I want. >> Abdullah arrives six hours late for the second event of the day in neighboring Daykundi province. Another cow has been killed for the occasion.- [ Foreign language ] >> Here again, the crowd is mostly made up of poor ethnic Hazaras. He hopes to swear with this populous message.- [ Foreign language ] >> This time, however, the response is underwhelming. After waiting for several hours, hundreds have already left.- [ Foreign language ] >> Those who remain appear more curious than committed.- [ Foreign language ] >> Jamilah traveled over 10 miles with her three children to hear Abdullah speak.- [ Foreign language ] >> [ unk ] security-- >> Despite the way, she believes he can bring security for all Afghans, not just your people.- [ Foreign language ] >> With long journeys home ahead of him, people start to walk away.- [ Foreign language ] >> For Abdullah and his entourage, it's time to head back to the helicopter for a nights rest in Kabul, it's another busy day in the back country. For TIME. com, this is Jason Motlagh, in Central Afghanistan. ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"The Afghan Election: The Man Who Could Upset Karzai","description":"The campaign of the former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah has gained momentum in the last few days. 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