Live: Afghans Vote in Historic Election -- As It Happens: Afghanistan Votes 2014 --- Afghans head to voting booths on Saturday to pick a new leader after more than a decade under President Hamid Karzai, in what would be the first democratic transfer of power in the nation’s history. But the Taliban has warned that those who participate may be killed, and a repeat of the widespread ballot-stuffing seen during the 2009 election could reinvigorate the insurgency, potentially sparking an ethnic conflict and destabilizing the country at a crucial moment as U.S.-led forces prepare to depart. -- It is pouring rain in Kabul as polls open for Afghanistan’s historic election amid fears of Taliban attacks to disrupt the vote–and hopes that the election will bring in a cleaner, more efficient government after 12 years of President Hamid Karzai. --- Saturday’s election, if successful, will mark the first democratic transfer of power in Afghanistan’s history. The vote will determine who will succeed President Hamid Karzai, who has been in power since 2001 and is not constitutionally allowed to run again. It will be the responsibility of the new government to uphold the gains of the past 13 years of foreign involvement as U.S. troops prepare to go home in December. - More, WSJ, at: http://blogs.wsj.com/dispatch/2014/04/04/as-it-happens-afghanistan-votes-2014-2/