Who will govern Pakistan?

Polling time ends, the wait begins

ISLAMABAD: A long and eventful day of voting has come to an end at 6pm, giving way to the next step in the electoral process: the counting of votes. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has requested that media houses refrain from airing any results till 7pm, reports Dawn.

According to the data released by ECP, a total of 3,459 candidates — 1,623 from Punjab, 824 from Sindh, 725 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 287 from Balochistan — were cleared to run for the 272 general seats of the national assembly. However, elections in two constituencies — NA-60, NA-108 — were later postponed by the commission.

A woman walks out of a polling station holding flag after casting her ballot in Rawalpindi. —AFP

A single party will need to bag at least 137 of the directly elected seats to be able to form the government on its own.

In the event that a party is unable to secure a “simple majority”, there is a hung parliament. This is when no single party can make government, leaving room for the formation of a coalition government of winning candidates from various political parties.

Millions of registered voters flocked to polling stations across the country to cast their vote in Pakistan’s 11th general election. According to DawnNewsTV, the first vote was cast in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Charsadda district.

Halfway during polling, PML-N had sent a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner, seeking an extension in time by one hour. "The PML-N is making this demand under Section 70 of the Elections Act 2017, which authorises ECP to 'extend polling hours already fixed'," read the letter, signed by Senator Mushahid Hussain.

Citing "large-scale nationwide complaints", the letter added that only "3-4 people" are being allowed to enter the polling station at one time, slowing down the process. "This is not only causing inconvenience to voters [...] but may also end up depriving people from their right of vote."

PPP, PTI and Awami Muslim League (AML) Chief Sheikh Rashid had also requested the ECP to extend the polling time.

The ECP, after deliberations, rejected the requests for an extension of one hour. In a press release, the ECP said that all those who were present at polling stations before 6pm would be allowed to cast their votes.

Earlier in the day, before polling stations officially opened for voting at 8am, enthusiastic citizens had queued up outside their respective stations as early as 7am.

Around 17,007 polling stations were declared "highly sensitive".

PML-N Chief Shahbaz Sharif was among the first people today to cast his vote. Speaking to the media outside the polling station in Model Town, Lahore, he requested that people come out and vote for PML-N.

Other politicians and candidates, including former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former Sindh chief minister Murad Ali Shah, MQM-P's Farooq Sattar, Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) Chairman Mustafa Kamal, PTI Chairman Imran Khan, Bilawal Bhutto and JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman also took part in the polling process.

 

Who will govern Pakistan?

Polling time ends, the wait begins

ISLAMABAD: A long and eventful day of voting has come to an end at 6pm, giving way to the next step in the electoral process: the counting of votes. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has requested that media houses refrain from airing any results till 7pm, reports Dawn. According to the data released by ECP, a total of 3,459 candidates 1,623 from Punjab, 824 from Sindh, 725 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 287 from Balochistan were cleared to run for the 272 general seats of the national assembly. However, elections in two constituencies NA-60, NA-108 were later postponed by the commission. A woman walks out of a polling station holding flag after casting her ballot in Rawalpindi. AFP A single party will need to bag at least 137 of the directly elected seats to be able to form the government on its own. In the event that a party is unable to secure a simple majority, there is a hung parliament. This is when no single party can make government, leaving room for the formation of a coalition government of winning candidates from various political parties. Millions of registered voters flocked to polling stations across the country to cast their vote in Pakistans 11th general election. According to DawnNewsTV, the first vote was cast in Khyber Pakhtunkhwas Charsadda district. Halfway during polling, PML-N had sent a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner, seeking an extension in time by one hour. The PML-N is making this demand under Section 70 of the Elections Act 2017, which authorises ECP to extend polling hours already fixed, read the letter, signed by Senator Mushahid Hussain. Citing large-scale nationwide complaints, the letter added that only 3-4 people are being allowed to enter the polling station at one time, slowing down the process. This is not only causing inconvenience to voters [...] but may also end up depriving people from their right of vote. PPP, PTI and Awami Muslim League (AML) Chief Sheikh Rashid had also requested the ECP to extend the polling time. The ECP, after deliberations, rejected the requests for an extension of one hour. In a press release, the ECP said that all those who were present at polling stations before 6pm would be allowed to cast their votes. Earlier in the day, before polling stations officially opened for voting at 8am, enthusiastic citizens had queued up outside their respective stations as early as 7am. Around 17,007 polling stations were declared highly sensitive. PML-N Chief Shahbaz Sharif was among the first people today to cast his vote. Speaking to the media outside the polling station in Model Town, Lahore, he requested that people come out and vote for PML-N. Other politicians and candidates, including former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former Sindh chief minister Murad Ali Shah, MQM-Ps Farooq Sattar, Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) Chairman Mustafa Kamal, PTI Chairman Imran Khan, Bilawal Bhutto and JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman also took part in the polling process.