On the loya jirga's first day, Mr Karzai declared he had been elected head of state although no vote had taken place before retracting.

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After the recent state elections - in three states and one union territory - elected legislators declared that that the average amount of money spent in their campaigns to be only between 39% and 59% of their limits in their official declarations.

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That month, Greece's newly elected Socialist government declared the country's 2009 budget deficit was heading for 12.5% of gross domestic product more than three times the previous government's official forecast.

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