KABUL — The Taliban failed to significantly disrupt Afghanistan's second presidential election Thursday, though fears of violence and overall wariness about the state of the country appeared to dampen turnout.

Still, millions went to the polls despite scattered attacks and Taliban threats.

"The Taliban aren't able to attack all the polling centers," said Kabir Zarif, 62, noting that there were more than 6,000 across the country.

"As a member of this society you must accept some risks," said Zarif, who runs a heating installation business and had just emerged from a cardboard voting booth set up in a high school gym in Kabul.

As he spoke, a group of camouflage-clad soldiers, who had left their weapons in a nearby barracks, lined up to vote.

Results may not be available for days, as paper ballots are collected from remote corners of the country and then tallied. Some will be transported down mountains by donkeys.

President Hamid Karzai faced a significant challenge for the first time since he came to power after the Taliban was ousted in a U.S.-led attack in 2001.

Karzai was appointed by a council and then elected in 2004. Abdullah Abdullah, a former foreign minister, emerged as the strongest challenger in this election.

In a news conference Thursday night, Abdullah said turnout was low because of fears of violence, particularly in the volatile south. He said his poll workers found incidents of people being pressured to vote for Karzai, which he said he would report to the Independent Election Commission.

During the campaign, Abdullah and other candidates accused Karzai's administration of corruption and incompetence and not taking advantage of opportunities.

Election workers said turnout appeared lower than in the first presidential election in 2004, when enthusiasm was high.

"The novelty always wears off," said Lorne Craner, president of the International Republican Institute, which had a delegation monitoring the election. He said the violence kept some voters away.

He also said this year's campaign, which was the first in which Karzai faced serious opposition, showed "political culture is developing." The campaign focused on issues, and the public closely watched a presidential debate. The campaign also featured television ads and large turnout for rallies.

Fawzia Koofi, a female member of parliament, said candidates broke "ethnicity lines" and discussed the issues.

Abdul Sami, a poll worker at a high school where Karzai voted, said people are less hopeful than they were in 2004. Several attacks in recent days, including a rocket attack in downtown Kabul and a suicide bombing, have dampened enthusiasm, he said.

"Those are the things that break people's spirits," Sami, 48, said.

Police were out in force, providing security around polling stations. Afghanistan's army provided an outer ring of security and international forces had quick-reaction troops if needed and aerial surveillance.

Men and women voted separately. Some registration cards for women did not include photographs because their husbands did not allow them to have their picture taken.

Voters were given long ballots — one for president and another for provincial council — and voters entered cardboard booths to mark their ballots. Ballots had photos of the candidates and indelible ink was used to mark the fingers of voters.

The voters folded the ballots and placed them in plastic bins, under the watchful eyes of poll workers.

There were minor reports of irregularities, but nothing "malicious," said Rich Williamson, who heads the International Republican Institute delegation here.