KABUL, AFGHANISTAN - Election officials on Monday declared Hamid Karzai the winner of Afghanistan's disputed presidential poll after cancelling a planned run-off following the withdrawal of his rival, Abdullah Abdullah.

"The Independent Election Commission declares the esteemed Hamid Karzai as the president ... because he was the winner of the first round and the only candidate in the second round," the commission's chief Azizullah Ludin told a news conference.