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The elections, initially scheduled for May 22, also were postponed because of a $50 million shortfall in financing from the international community, said Fazel Ahmad Manawi, head of the Independent Election Commission.

Some Western nations, including the United States, had pressed for a delay in the vote until Afghanistan reforms its election process, including the creation of a complete voter roll, The New York Times reported Sunday.

The 2009 presidential elections were marred by massive voter fraud that forced President Hamid Karzai into a runoff with his closest competitor, Abdullah Abdullah, who ultimately withdrew and handed Karzai his second term.

The parliamentary delay will give NATO-led security forces more time to secure areas in southern Afghanistan, where the Taliban were accused of intimidating voters during the presidential campaign, the BBC reported Sunday.

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