in April 1992, an indirect election for president took place in December 1992. An interim government, headed by a prime minister, was formed in June 1993. Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (2003-2021) Due to the largely illiterate nature of Afghan society, ballots during the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan-era displayed images of the candidates, each of whom was also represented by a symbol of their choosing. Conservative Pashtun districts used a "proxy" system to register women voters, which was particularly susceptible to fraud. 2004 Under the 2001 Bonn Agreement, Afghanistan was scheduled to hold presidential and parliamentary elections in 2004 in order to replace the transitional government led by American-backed Hamid Karzai since his appointment in December 2001. Presidential elections were held in 2004, but parliamentary elections were not held until mid-September 2005. Hamid Karzai won the election with 55.4% of the votes and three times more votes than any other candidate. 2005 Afghanistan held parliamentary and provincial council elections on September 18, 2005. Final results were delayed by accusations of election fraud, and were finally announced on November 12, 2005. Former warlords and their followers gained the majority of seats in both the lower house and the provincial council (which elects the members of the upper house). Women won 28% of the seats in the lower house, six more than the 25% guaranteed in the 2004 Constitution. Turnout was estimated at about 50%, substantially lower than at the presidential election in October 2004. This was blamed on the lack of identifiable party lists as a result of Afghanistan's new electoral law, which left voters in many cases unclear on who they were voting for. 2009 The Afghan presidential and provincial council elections held on August 20, 2009 were widely characterized as marred by lack of security, violence, extremely low voter turnout, and widespread ballot stuffing, intimidation, and other electoral fraud. Over 2,800 complaints were received by the Election Complaints Commission, with the largest proportion concerning irregularities at the poll, including ballot box stuffing and voter intimidation. The New York Times wrote, "fraud was so pervasive that nearly a quarter of all votes were thrown out." According to an article by The Times, "some 1.26 million recorded votes were excluded from an election that cost the international community more than $300 million." (Another estimate placed the cost at $500 million.) Official election monitors and the UN placed voter turnout in the August