White House national security adviser Condoleezza Rice said the election would be judged as legitimate.

German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer called the poll an "impressive success."

Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said the election is a good thing for the Afghan people, Pakistan, and for world peace.

Meanwhile, officials say an independent commission will investigate claims by all 15 opposition candidates who ran against incumbent Afghan leader Hamid Karzai that the vote was marred by fraud.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) says that Afghan candidates' demands to nullify the election and hold a re-vote are not justified.

Election organizers say nearly 80 percent of registered Afghan refugees in Pakistan cast ballots, while only 40 percent of eligible voters in Iran participated.

Election officials say actual results won't be tabulated for several days and that the final official tally may not be available until the end of the month.

(Reuters/AFP/dpa/AP)

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