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Imran Khan’s allies secure biggest share of seats in Pakistan’s election
None of the three major parties of the country won the necessary 169 seats to have a majority in Parliament.
FILE PHOTO: Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan pauses as he speaks with Reuters during an interview, in Lahore, Pakistan March 17, 2023. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
Supporters of the incarcerated former Pakistani Prime Minister, Imran Khan, secured more seats in the recent national elections than the political factions that removed him from power nearly two years ago, as per the results published on Sunday.
The PTI was banned from this year’s election
The election held last Thursday to determine a new parliament was marred by accusations of vote manipulation, an unprecedented mobile phone shutdown, and the exclusion of Khan and his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), from the electoral process. Members of the PTI ran as independent candidates due to measures taken by the Election Commission and Supreme Court to undermine their party’s involvement. These measures included removing the party’s electoral symbol, crucial for guiding illiterate voters to candidates on the ballot and prohibiting party rallies.
Imran Khan, ousted from the premiership through a no-confidence vote in 2022, has been incarcerated since August of the same year. He was disqualified from participating in the election due to criminal convictions and alleges that his sentences and the numerous legal cases against him are politically motivated.
The final count revealed that independent candidates affiliated with PTI secured 101 out of 266 seats in the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament.
Pakistan needs a coalition to form a government
The Pakistan Muslim League-N party (PML-N), led by the three-time former prime minister and previously convicted Nawaz Sharif, secured the second-largest number of seats at 75. The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), led by Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, came in third with 54 seats. One result is pending, and another vote was postponed due to a candidate’s death.
As no party has secured a majority to form a government, Pakistan is poised for a coalition. The new parliament will determine the country’s next prime minister.
The election outcome is a setback for Sharif, who had been identified as the preferred candidate by the influential security establishment due to his uneventful return to the country last October. Pakistan’s military has traditionally presented itself as the ultimate arbiter in selecting the prime minister. Despite spending four years in self-exile to evade prison sentences, Sharif’s convictions were overturned within weeks of his return to Pakistan.
Even on polling day, Sharif initially expressed a desire for a single-party rule and a full five-year term. However, by Friday evening, witnessing his party trailing behind independent candidates supported by Khan, he began discussing alliances and collaboration.
As negotiations will start soon between the parties, experts have warned Pakistan could be facing a prolonged period of political instability.
