[Howell:] Polls have finally opened in the Afghan parliament election but not everyone is getting to cast a ballot. Thousands are unable to vote because some polling stations haven't opened and others simply don't have supplies. Some voters have given up and gone home.
[Allen:] The election was delayed for three years because of security concerns and voters in Kandahar province have to wait another week because this man you are seeing, this powerful police chief, was shot and killed Thursday. The Taliban claimed responsibility. Let's talk about these issues with Ali Lassabi from the Afghan capital, Kabul. Thanks so much for joining us. First, they have the threat of the Taliban intimidating and threatening people that would vote and now there seems to be some serious technical issues. That has to be a disappointment. What can you tell us?
[Ali Lassabi , Journalist:] So that is really the issue right now is the logistical issues. There have been definite security issues, for instance, in the northern province of Kunduz. There have been reports of rocket attacks, reports of one polling center being ransacked by the Taliban in Kabul and there are rocket attacks. But the real issue right now are these logistical matters, where people are showing up to voting centers and election commission workers aren't there, election team observers aren't there. The biometric machines aren't working. And they are essentially turned away. We're also seeing a major problem for the Kochi population, the nomad population of the country, that live across the different provinces of the country, who are being told that
[Lassabi:] their ballot boxes are not yet set up because they are given specific ballots based on their IDs that list specifically their candidates because their candidates can run all over the country, they are not just running for a single province. So it is proving to be a major issue for people.
[Allen:] And let's talk about that, the fact that this election was postponed for three years with security issues. We've had more women voting excuse me, running for office than ever before in Afghanistan. So many young people that we have interviewed said they want to go and vote, they want changes for their country. What is being stymied here, what is being prevented because of these unfortunate issues today?
[Lassabi:] This is exactly what is being prevented, the change. I went to go vote today but I was probably one of the lucky ones. And I've been talking to at least five or six young candidates throughout this campaign process. And what they are all saying is that the current parliament is a mafia network, it is corrupt, it is fraudulent. They are out for their own money and their own interests and they aren't really listening to the people. And that is the changes that they were hoping to bring. So this is what is being stymied, is the chance for people to feel like they have two representatives in their parliament.
[Allen:] It has to be such a disappointment. We'll continue to follow it and see if things turn around. Ali Lassabi, thank you so much, we appreciate it.
[Howell:] Now to allegations of Russian interference in the U.S. political system. The Justice Department has charged a Russian woman with trying to influence voters in the upcoming midterm elections.
[Allen:] This has been a fear, that there would still be some intrusion. Investigators say she was part of an online propaganda effort aimed at inflaming public opinion and sowing discord. CNN's Sara Murray has more about it.
[Sara Murray, Cnn National Political Correspondent:] Tonight the Justice Department charging a Russian woman with conspiracy for trying to manipulate voters in the 2018 midterms. As it cracks down on election meddling beyond special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. Elena Kushanova of St. Petersburg, Russia, allegedly managed the financing for social media troll agency that sent out these ads and memes to fan division between racial minority groups, political radicals and disaffected voters. Soon after the Justice Department announced the charge against her, the office of the Director of National Intelligence, Department of Justice, FBI and Department of Homeland Security warned the American public of continuing efforts from countries like Russia to divide America along political lines. The coordinated show of strength against election interference coming just weeks before the November midterms. The agencies called out Russia, China and Iran for ongoing efforts to manipulate voters in the 2018 and 2020 U.S. elections and warned Americans that foreign actors use social media to amplify divisive issues, spread disinformation and sponsor content through English language media, including RTE and Sputnik. There is no evidence the interference efforts have impacted voting infrastructure to prevent voting, change vote counts or disrupt our ability to tally votes in the midterm elections, according to the joint statement. And when President Donald Trump was asked about this Russian hacking, he simply said that it had nothing to do with his campaign Sara Murray, CNN, Washington.
[Allen:] The U.S. midterm election is just 2.5 weeks away now. You can tune into see a major event leading up to the vote, the Florida governor's debate. It will be moderated by our own Jake Tapper. That is Sunday night in the United States, Monday morning in Asia and Europe.
[Howell:] And in the United States a lot of people played the lottery. And someone in the U.S. may be the lucky person to win $1 billion. It is a lot of money for sure. The Mega Millions lottery drew its winning numbers just a short time ago.
[Allen:] And we're waiting it see if there is a winner or winners for the second largest payout in U.S. history. But here is the buzz kill. A significant chunk of the winnings will go straight to federal taxes, which would seem to be affordable if you'd won $1 billion. You'll be all right, whoever won, if there is. Back to our reality, it took nearly $2 billion to get a mission to Mercury off the ground. You're probably thinking Mercury? What do we need to know about the planet?
[Howell:] That it is hot?
[Allen:] We'll have that story next.