Afghanistan prepares for election

KABUL, Afghanistan, Aug. 19 (UPI) -- The Afghanistan government is facing a moment of truth for its fledgling democracy as its second-ever presidential election approaches, observers say.

International analysts said Thursday's election, in which 40 challengers are going up against President Hamid Karzai, will test the country's commitment to its nascent democracy even as pre-election violence casts its pall, CNN reported.

"We're at a moment of truth," Mark Schneider, senior vice president of the International Crisis Group, an independent advisory and analysis organization, told the U.S. broadcaster.

To help ensure a strong voter turnout, military officials said hundreds of U.S. Marines and Afghan soldiers have poured into restive areas of southern Afghanistan, such as Helmand province, to provide security for people nervous about Taliban strikes.

"Afghanistan has never had a contested election," Richard Holbrooke, the U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, told CNN. "So this is a remarkable experiment in democracy and something that Afghanistan needs to give legitimacy to the new government."

The two main challengers to Karzai, who holds a commanding lead in polls, are former Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani and former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah, who both say Karzai's reign has been marked by endemic corruption.