In shock result, allies of jailed ex-leader Khan win most seats in Pakistan election

In a surprising victory, independent candidates affiliated with Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek E Insaaf (PTI) party have won the most National Assembly seats in Pakistan’s general election.

According to the Election Commission of Pakistan, PTI has won 98 seats so far, with 22 remaining. The Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz party (PMLN), which had been favored to sweep the polls, has so far won the second-most seats with 69. The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has the third-most with 51 seats.

The 22 remaining seats would not be enough to give PMLN or PPP the lead, even if they were to win those seats. Still, none of the three major parties of the country won the necessary 169 seats to have a majority in parliament and, therefore, will be unable to form government on their own. It is also unclear who will be picked to be the country’s next Prime Minister.

Violent protests broke out on Friday over allegations of vote rigging and the slow vote count, amid warnings from the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan that the “lack of transparency” surrounding the delay in announcing the election results was “deeply concerning.”

At least two people were killed and 24 injured in Shangla in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during a confrontation between workers from Khan’s political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and police officers.

A police officer in Shangla told CNN that two protesters had died when they were hit by stones thrown by their group at police. However the PTI-affiliated local candidate, Syed Fareen, told CNN that they were having a peaceful demonstration when the police fired on the protesters, killing the two workers and injuring at least 24.

Khan-backed candidate Meher Bano Qureshi, whose father is the jailed former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, told CNN she had been leading with a significant margin until the election commission “froze” results overnight and denied her access to the returning officer’s office.

It was then announced Friday that she had lost in the Punjab constituency of Multan with what she said was a “historic” number of rejected votes, adding that this was “in my opinion, clearly indicative of tampering.”

Foreign governments have expressed concerns about interference in Pakistan’s election. On Friday, the US called for an investigation into “claims of interference or fraud” surrounding the vote, with a State Department spokesman agreeing with assessments that the elections “included undue restrictions on freedoms of expression, association, and peaceful assembly.”

“We condemn electoral violence… and are concerned about allegations of interference in the electoral process” spokesman Matthew Miller said.

Thursday’s vote, already delayed for months, comes as the country of 220 million faces mounting challenges – from economic uncertainty and frequent militant attacks, to climate catastrophes that are putting its most vulnerable at risk.

Analysts have described the vote as the least credible in the country’s post-independence history, accusing authorities of “pre-poll rigging” amid a wide crackdown on Khan’s party.

Polling staff open ballot boxes in the presence of polling agents from various political parties as they start counting votes in Quetta, Pakistan on February 8, 2024. – Banaras Khan/AFP/Getty Images

Former cricket star Khan, 71, who was ousted from power in a storm of controversy, remains imprisoned on multiple convictions and banned from contesting the vote against his rivals. The PTI has been prohibited from using its famous cricket bat symbol on ballots, dealing a blow to millions of illiterate people who might use it to cast their vote, and television stations are banned from running Khan’s speeches.

His longtime foe, 74-year-old Sharif, a scion of the elite Sharif political dynasty, is seeking to make what would be a remarkable political comeback following years of self-exile overseas after he was sentenced to prison on corruption charges.

If Sharif’s party forms the new government he would become prime minister for a historic fourth term.

He took a conciliatory tone on Friday and stated that “all parties should sit together to heal a wounded Pakistan.” He also stated that his party respected the mandate of all parties, “including independents,” referring to the candidates from jailed former Prime Minister Khan’s party, who had been unable to run under their party name.

Sharif stressed that his party “did not want to fight” as “Pakistan could not afford conflict.” He also said his party “wanted to improve relations” with Pakistan’s neighbors.

Also standing is Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the 35-year-old son of slain former leader Benazir Bhutto, hoping to reestablish his Pakistan People’s Party as a major political force.

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