Despite days of intense negotiations between President Hamid Karzai and Western diplomats, Afghanistan’s election crisis appears to be no closer to a resolution and is heading toward dangerous, uncharted territory.

Two months after Afghans went to the polls, a U.N.-backed election panel has completed its investigation into allegations of fraud and ballot stuffing.

Multiple sources say the results strip President Hamid Karzai of enough votes to drop his total to below 50% — forcing a run-off election with his main challenger Dr. Abdullah Abdullah.

However, President Karzai and his supporters insist he won the August 20^th election fairly and have hinted they may refuse to participate in a second round election – throwing the election into further crisis.

Over the weekend, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel said President Barack Obama would not send more U.S. troops until a credible government is in place, and questioned whether the U.S. had a credible Afghan partner it could work with.