Hamid Karzai was declared Afghanistan's first directly elected president on Wednesday, report agencies.
"Karzai is the winner," declared Sultan Baheen of the United Nations-Afghan Joint Electoral Management Body which oversaw the October 9 elections.
Interim President Karzai won 55.4 per cent of the votes, 39 per cent higher than his nearest rival Yunus Qanooni, and enough to avoid a second round of voting.
Though Karzai's win was expected, the counting took time and the election commission had to wait for a report from an expert panel investigating allegations of fraud and irregularities on voting day.
The victory was announced soon after the UN-appointed panel concluded that the "shortcomings" on election day, including the low-quality
"There were shortcomings ... but they could not have materially affected the overall result," the panel's report said.
Earlier reports:
Most candidates boycott Afghan polls
Karzai has only 50-50 chance
Afghanistan Election: Who's Who