The Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan (IEC) on Wednesday announced the presidential elections timeline based on which the polls will be held next year on April 20. 

Ghazni parliamentary elections will be held simultaneously with the presidential elections, the IEC chief Abdulbadi Sayyad said. 

Based on the electoral timeline, the presidential candidates may file nomination papers from December 22 to 2nd of January 2019. 

“It was a demand both by the political parties and government to hold the elections on 31 of Hamal (20 April),” said Sayyad. 

“The list of presidential candidates will be announced on January 8,” IEC commissioner Maliha Hassan said. 

Based on the Constitution, the legal tenure of the National Unity Government (NUG) under President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah comes to an end next year in May.

This comes as President Ghani in his speech at Geneva Conference on Afghanistan reaffirmed his government’s will for elections to be held on time.