Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani seems to be on track to win a second term Sunday, after election officials announced he had a majority of votes in the presidential election. 

According to the Independent Election Commission (IEC), Ghani won 50.64 percent of the vote in the September 28 poll, while his rival Abdullah Abdullah won 39.52 percent.

"We are going to announce the election results today," Zabih Sadaat, IEC's spokesman told reporters.

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Afghanistan Elections: Citizens still await results after nearly two-month delay

Preliminary results were originally due October 19 but were repeatedly delayed amid technical issues and allegations of fraud from various candidates.

The protracted limbo has heaped additional uncertainty on Afghans who already are anxiously awaiting the outcome of talks between the U.S. and the Taliban. Most observers see the election as a two-horse race between incumbent President Ashraf Ghani and his Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah.

If neither candidate scores a majority, the vote will go to a second-round runoff, probably in the spring.

After the preliminary results are released, candidates have the opportunity to lodge any complaints before a final result is published.

Responding to the results, Abdullah's office said in a statement he would contest it. "We would like to make it clear once again to our people, supporters, election commission and our international allies that our team will not accept the result of this fraudulent vote unless our legitimate demands are addressed," the statement read.

Meanwhile, the IEC insisted that it completed its duty "with honesty, loyalty, responsibility and faithfulness." 

"We respected every single vote because we wanted democracy to endure," said IEC Chairwoman Hawa Alam Nuristani. However, the outcome could change after final results, which were still subject to a review by the election complaints' commission, she said.

If a review showed Ghani's vote falling below 50 percent and no other candidate with a majority, a second round of voting would be held, she said.

(With input from AFP)

(Cover: Hawa Alam Nuristani (C), head of the Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan, arrives to announce preliminary presidential election results in Kabul, Afghanistan, December 22, 2019. /Reuters Photo)