2013 Pakistani general election: Difference between revisions

Pakistani general election, 2013

11 May 2013
All 342 seats in the National Assembly 172 seats needed for a majority
Turnout	55.02%
First party Second party Third party   Imran Khan Leader Nawaz Sharif Ameen Faheem Imran Khan Party PML(N) PPP PTI Leader since 16 November 1988 1 October 2002 25 April 1996 Leader's seat NA-120 Lahore NA-218 Hyderabad NA-56 Rawalpindi Seats won 166 45 35 Seat change 77 74 35 Popular vote 14,874,104 6,911,218 7,679,954 Percentage 32.77% 15.32% 16.92% Swing 55.72% 13.2% 9.97%
Prime Minister before election Mir Hazar Khan Khoso Independent Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif PML(N)

Results of the 2013 Pakistani General Election

  Pakistan Muslim League (N)

  Pakistan Peoples Party

  Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf

  Independents

  Muttahida Qaumi Movement

  Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F)

  Postponed/terminated/withheld

  Pakistan Muslim League (F)

  Pakhtun-khwa Milli Awami Party

  Repoll ordered

  Jamaat-e-Islami

  National Peoples Party

  Pakistan Muslim League (Q)

  Qaumi Watan Party

  All Pakistan Muslim League

  National Party (Pakistan)

  Balochistan National Party

  Awami Jamhuri Ittehad Pakistan

  Awami Muslim League

  Pakistan Muslim League (Z)

  Awami National Party

General elections were held in Pakistan on 11 May 2013 to elect the members of the 14th National Assembly and to the four provincial assemblies of Punjab, Sindh, Baluchistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Elections were held in all four provinces, the federal capital territory of Islamabad and in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. The remaining two territories of Pakistan, the Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, were ineligible to vote due to their disputed status. The legacy of the elections has been marred by allegations, and proof of rigging along with tampering within the bureaucracy. The secretary of the Election commission resigned and said that "historic rigging" was seen in these elections which had been unprecedented before. (see Incidents of Rigging/Incompetence)

The elections were controversial because the chief election commissioner immediately conceded failure of free and fair polls in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city of 20 million The elections were initially deemed to be free and fair, however serious irregularities have later emerged with the election commission confirming that it did not even have the voter record of 139 constituencies (including and beyond the PML-N's margin of victory) Pakistan's chief election commissioner also resigned, alleging extreme judicial interference in his investigations of voter fraud The PML-N were declared winners by Pakistan's largest media group, Geo, even though only 18% of the votes had been counted In one constituency, 256 of the voting bags were found to be fake and only 69 were genuine and the PTI insisted for a year on having thumb verification in just 4 constituencies, to which the PML-N refused, this has resulted in suspicion over the role of the PML-N Politicians also became seriously concerned with the issue, Imran Khan's rally on 11 May 2014 ensured that the issue remained on the national stage and featured even more prominently. Key opposition parties such as the PML-Q and the Shia miniority MWM joined Imran Khan in pointing out the suspicions of the election The Pakistan People's Party has also demanded the members of the election commission resign Other parties have not directly joined the PTI's agitation - such as the Jamaat-e-Islami but they have complained about rigging and unite over electoral reforms
Pakistan is the world's fifth largest democracy and the world's second largest Muslim democracy after Indonesia. The elections are noted for the first civilian transfer of power following the successful completion of a five-year term by a democratically elected government. The election took place in 272 constituencies, whilst a further 70 seats were awarded to parties having been reserved for women and minority groups. None of the parties achieved the 172 seats needed for an overall majority. The Pakistan Muslim League (N), led by Nawaz Sharif, won the largest number of votes and seats but still fell six seats short. This resulted in a hung parliament where no party was able to command a majority in the National Assembly. This was the second consecutive general election to return a hung parliament, the first being the prior 2008 general election. Unlike in 2008, the potential for a hung parliament had this time been widely considered and predicted and both the country and politicians were better prepared for the constitutional process that would follow such a result.

Speculations for the potential hung parliament were dismissed when the independent candidates who had won seats in their respective constituencies joined the PML(N) which allowed party to formed a simple-majority government by bringing on-board nineteen independent candidates, thirteen more than the minimum required to form a government. This swing ultimately resulted for Nawaz Sharif become the new Prime Minister of Pakistan.

Prior to the elections, the leftist PPP formed an alliance with PML(Q), while on the conservative side, the PML (N) allied with PML(F) and Sunni Tehreek. Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan led the centrist PTI, while the Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen, Jamaat-e-Islami and Bahawalpur National Awami Party also contested the elections.

Background

Main article: Long March (Pakistan)

By Constitution's stipulation on Time of conducting elections in the country, the [general] election are to be held at an interval of five years or whenever parliament is dissolved by the President. Upon dissolution of the National Assembly (a lower house of the Parliament), the elections are to be held within a period of sixty days immediately under a caretaker set–up. The previous elections were held in February 2008 and its term naturally expired on February 2013.

In mid-January 2013, Sufi cleric and politician Dr. Tahir-ul-Qadri led a Long March from Lahore to Islamabad, which is over 350 km, demanding the electoral reforms, the quick dissolution of the National Assembly and a precise date for the election. The march attracted about ~60,000 participants from across Pakistan and ended peacefully. However, this appeared to have little impact on the PPP government who continued on as per normal, and were seemingly following their plan as to when to announce elections. The anti-corruption activism led by Imran Khan gathered momentum and political interests.

In the run up to the elections, a US Congressional report provided a brief overview of the PPP government between 2008 to 2013. The annual report included the input of 16 US intelligence agencies, including the CIA, which pointed the policies and performances of the PPP government during their five-year term. The report wanted that "Economically, trouble looms. Pakistan, with its small tax base, poor system of tax collection, and reliance on foreign aid, faces no real prospects for sustainable economic growth. The government has been unwilling to address economic problems that continue to constrain economic growth. The PPP government has made no real effort to persuade its disparate coalition members to accept much-needed monetary policy and tax reforms, because members are simply focused on retaining their seats in the upcoming elections."

Process

Main article: Elections in Pakistan

With assistance from the Asian office of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP)announced the printing of computerized electoral rolls, the first of its kind database which resulted in the elimination of 35 million bogus voters off the list. In 2012, the ECP awarded contracts for the development and testings of the Electronic voting machines (EVM) to KRL, NUST, and COMSATs.

On 24 January 2013, the ECP approved electoral reforms ahead of the upcoming general elections. According to the approved reforms, the entire government machinery would come under the authority of the ECP once the election schedule is announced. Another clause in the reforms also empowers the ECP with administrative authority over the announcement of the election schedule. Moreover, the Election Commission would be allowed to make transfers and postings of high-ranking officials including Inspector Generals, secretaries and chief secretaries. The motive behind these reforms is to ensure transparency of the upcoming general elections, which the Chief Election Commissioner had termed crucial.

Schedule

• March 30, 2012: Contracts for the Electronic voting machines (EVM) were awarded to KRL, NUST, and COMSATs.
• August 1, 2012: The Election Commission of Pakistan announces 2012 general elections would be held on the basis of same old constituencies.
• December, 2012: The Supreme Court of Pakistan orders delimitation of constituencies and door-to-door verification of voters with the help of Pakistan Army in Karachi.
• January 17, 2013: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) starts door-to-door verification of voters list.
• February 3, 2013: President Asif Ali Zardari announced the date for the general elections in the country, between 8 March and 14 March 2013.
• March 31, 2013: Last date to submit the candidates' papers.

Caretaker set–up

According to the Constitution, the caretaker government operates in the interim period between the normal dissolution of parliament for the purpose of holding an election and the formation of a new government after the election results are known. Prime Minister Pervez Ashraf had written a letter to then-Leader of the Opposition Nisar Ali Khan, requesting him to propose names of persons for appointment as caretaker Prime Minister.

The PML(N), JI, PTI and JUI(F) had agreed on the name of retired senior justice Nasir Aslam Zahid as the Acting Prime Minister until the elections take place. However, the consensus between the PPP and the opposition failed, and the matter was forwarded to a parliamentary committee, comprising four members from the opposition and the government. Provided stipulation by the Constitution, the Election Commission announced the appointment of retired Chief Justice of the Federal Shariat Court Mir Hazar Khan Khoso on 24 March 2013, in a press conference held by Chief Election Commissioner Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim.

Registered voters

Following is the final list of registered voters in each district of Pakistan who are eligible to cast their vote.

• The total number of registered voters for the election were 86,194,802.
• The province of Punjab had the highest number of registered voters.
• In cities, five districts of Karachi which form the city of Karachi had a total of 7,171,237 registered voters; more than total voters of the province of Balochistan and more than any other city or district in Pakistan.
• In Balochistan, due to sparse population, some National Assembly seats were shared by two or three districts.

Province	District	No. of Voters	Seat No
Balochistan	Awaran	56,387	NA-270
Balochistan	Barkhan	55,327	NA-263
Balochistan	Chagai	66,836	NA-260
Balochistan	Dera Bugti	63,953	NA-265
Balochistan	Gwadar	93,650	NA-272
Balochistan	Harnai	33,140	NA-265
Balochistan	Jaffarabad	247,316	NA-266
Balochistan	Jhal Magsi	44,533	NA-267
Balochistan	Kachhi (Bolan)	103,108	NA-267
Balochistan	Kalat	104,445	NA-268
Balochistan	Kech	173,972	NA-272
Balochistan	Kharan	45,176	NA-271
Balochistan	Khuzdar	165,593	NA-269
Balochistan	Killa Abdullah	184,832	NA-262
Balochistan	Killa Saifullah	88,424	NA-264
Balochistan	Kohlu	38,624	NA-265
Balochistan	Lasbela	182,697	NA-270
Balochistan	Loralai	107,028	NA-263
Balochistan	Mastung	80,118	NA-268
Balochistan	Musakhel	51,864	NA-263
Balochistan	Nasirabad	162,349	NA-266
Balochistan	Nushki	61,878	NA-260
Balochistan	Panjgur	74,751	NA-271
Balochistan	Pishin	196,859	NA-261
Balochistan	Quetta	559,939	NA-259
Balochistan	Sherani	31,837	NA-264
Balochistan	Sibi	75,832	NA-265
Balochistan	Washuk	38,171	NA-271
Balochistan	Zhob	96,278	NA-264
Balochistan	Ziarat	51,742	NA-261
BALOCHISTAN	TOTAL	3,336,659	NA-259 to NA-272
FATA	Bajaur Agency	353,554	NA-43, NA-44
FATA	F.R. Bannu	9,482	NA-47
FATA	F.R. D. I. Khan	22,269	NA-47
FATA	F.R. Kohat	41,070	NA-47
FATA	F.R. Lakki Marwat	9,939	NA-47
FATA	F.R. Peshawar	23,371	NA-47
FATA	F.R. Tank	15,581	NA-47
FATA	Khyber Agency	336,763	NA-45, NA-46
FATA	Kurram Agency	262,021	NA-37, NA-38
FATA	Mohmand Agency	177,244	NA-36
FATA	North Waziristan Agency	160,666	NA-40
FATA	Orakzai Agency	125,687	NA-39
FATA	South Waziristan Agency	200,666	NA-41, NA-42
FATA	TOTAL	1,738,313	NA-36 to NA-47
Federal Area	Islamabad	625,964	NA-48, NA-49
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Abbottabad	675,188	NA-17, NA-18
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Bannu	444,059	NA-26
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Batagram	204,980	NA-22
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Buner	360,019	NA-28
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Charsadda	704,680	NA-7, NA-8
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Chitral	206,909	NA-32
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	D. I. Khan	606,959	NA-24
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Hangu	214,703	NA-16
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Haripur	531,866	NA-19
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Karak	315,087	NA-15
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Kohat	409,372	NA-14
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Kohistan	127,015	NA-23
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Lakki Marwat	330,274	NA-27
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Lower Dir	541,565	NA-34
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Malakand	311,172	NA-35
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Mansehra	742,674	NA-20
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Mardan	987,122	NA-9, NA-10, NA-11
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Nowshera	619,914	NA-5, NA-6
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Peshawar	1,393,144	NA-1, NA-2, NA-3, NA-4
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Shangla	296,722	NA-31
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Swabi	714,454	NA-12, NA-13
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Swat	981,823	NA-29, NA-30
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Tank	150,585	NA-25
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Tor Ghar	64,867	NA-21
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	Upper Dir	331,004	NA-33
KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA	TOTAL	12,266,157	NA-1 to NA-35
Punjab	Attock	1,022,180	NA-57, NA-58, NA-59
Punjab	Bahawalnagar	1,264,077	NA-188, NA-189, NA-190, NA-191
Punjab	Bahawalpur	1,522,061	NA-183, NA-184, NA-185, NA-186, NA-187
Punjab	Bhakkar	711,837	NA-73, NA-74
Punjab	Chakwal	929,747	NA-60, NA-61
Punjab	Chiniot	602,290	NA-86, NA-87, NA-88
Punjab	Dera Ghazi Khan	1,052,720	NA-171, NA-172, NA-173
Punjab	Faisalabad	3,622,748	NA-75, NA-76, NA-77, NA-78, NA-79, NA-80, NA-81, NA-82, NA-83, NA-84, NA-85
Punjab	Gujranwala	2,273,141	NA-95, NA-96, NA-97, NA-98, NA-99, NA-100, NA-101
Punjab	Gujrat	1,581,402	NA-104, NA-105, NA-106, NA-107
Punjab	Hafizabad	543,646	NA-102, NA-103
Punjab	Jhang	1,145,415	NA-89, NA-90, NA-91
Punjab	Jhelum	783,571	NA-62, NA-63
Punjab	Kasur	1,463,575	NA-138, NA-139, NA-140, NA-141, NA-142
Punjab	Khanewal	1,301,926	NA-156, NA-157, NA-158, NA-159
Punjab	Khushab	680,471	NA-69, NA-70
Punjab	Lahore	4,410,095	NA-118, NA-119, NA-120, NA-121, NA-122, NA-123, NA-124, NA-125, NA-126, NA-127, NA-128, NA-129, NA-130
Punjab	Layyah	736,509	NA-181, NA-182
Punjab	Lodhran	727,177	NA-154, NA-155
Punjab	Mandi Bahauddin	815,154	NA-108, NA-109
Punjab	Mianwali	757,191	NA-71, NA-72
Punjab	Multan	2,110,177	NA-148, NA-149, NA-150, NA-151, NA-152, NA-153
Punjab	Muzaffargarh	1,681,436	NA-176, NA-177, NA-178, NA-179, NA-180
Punjab	Nankana Sahib	623,625	NA-135, NA-136, NA-137
Punjab	Narowal	792,379	NA-115, NA-116, NA-117
Punjab	Okara	1,396,811	NA-143, NA-144, NA-145, NA-146, NA-147
Punjab	Pakpattan	823,478	NA-164, NA-165, NA-166
Punjab	Rahim Yar Khan	1,904,615	NA-192, NA-193, NA-194, NA-195, NA-196, NA-197
Punjab	Rajanpur	724,286	NA-174, NA-175
Punjab	Rawalpindi	2,645,608	NA-50, NA-51, NA-52, NA-53, NA-54, NA-55, NA-56
Punjab	Sahiwal	1,190,424	NA-160, NA-161, NA-162, NA-163
Punjab	Sargodha	1,861,804	NA-64, NA-65, NA-66, NA-67, NA-68
Punjab	Sheikhupura	1,341,341	NA-131, NA-132, NA-133, NA-134
Punjab	Sialkot	1,841,347	NA-110, NA-111, NA-112, NA-113, NA-114
Punjab	Toba Tek Singh	1,089,508	NA-92, NA-93, NA-94
Punjab	Vehari	1,285,562	NA-167, NA-168, NA-169, NA-170
PUNJAB	TOTAL	49,259,334	NA-50 to NA-197
Sindh	Badin	639,314	NA-224, NA-225
Sindh	Dadu	609,609	NA-231, NA-232, NA-233
Sindh	Ghotki	568,065	NA-200, NA-201
Sindh	Hyderabad	923,140	NA-218, NA-219, NA-220, NA-221
Sindh	Jacobabad	394,557	NA-208, NA-209, NA-210
Sindh	Jamshoro	369,424	NA-231
Sindh	Kambar-Shahdadkot	508,062	NA-206
Sindh	Karachi Central	1,632,487	NA-244, NA-245, NA-246, NA-247
Sindh	Karachi East	2,093,898	NA-253, NA-254, NA-255, NA-256
Sindh	Karachi South	1,131,376	NA-248, NA-249, NA-250, NA-251, NA-252
Sindh	Karachi West	1,493,055	NA-239, NA-240, NA-241, NA-242, NA-243
Sindh	Karachi Malir	820,421	NA-257, NA-258
Sindh	Kashmore	353,616	NA-210
Sindh	Khairpur	838,502	NA-215, NA-216, NA-217
Sindh	Larkana	585,519	NA-204, NA-205, NA-207
Sindh	Matiari	300,486	NA-223
Sindh	Mirpur Khas	585,262	NA-226, NA-227
Sindh	Naushahro Feroze	600,090	NA-211, NA-212
Sindh	Sanghar	793,397	NA-234, NA-235, NA-236
Sindh	Shaheed Benazirabad	668,193	NA-213, NA-214
Sindh	Shikarpur	488,878	NA-202, NA-203
Sindh	Sukkur	527,635	NA-198, NA-199
Sindh	Tando Allahyar	286,956	NA-223
Sindh	Tando Muhammad Khan	230,554	NA-222
Sindh	Tharparkar	471,831	NA-229, NA-230
Sindh	Thatta	663,543	NA-237, NA-238
Sindh	Umerkot	385,505	NA-228
SINDH	TOTAL	18,963,375	NA-198 to NA-258
PAKISTAN	TOTAL	86,194,802

Campaign

With the announcement of the care-taker government, conservative parties such as PML (N), PTI and the leftist PPP started campaigning in Pakistan as early as March 27, six weeks ahead of the May 11 election date. Power shortages were another issue in the election campaign.

Pakistan Peoples Party

Founded in 1967, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is a centre-left and left oriented party, with a mainstream agenda of promoting the socialist economics and social justice. The PPP announced that the Bilawal Zardari would be the PPP's candidate for the next Prime Minister, despite Bilawal was still too young to become Prime Minister. The Article 62 of the Constitution clearly states that a person "not less than twenty-five years of age and is enrolled as a voter in any electoral roll for election to the seat", an age Bilawal Zardari will not become until September 2013. On 5 May 2013, it was revealed that that Bilawal Zardari had left Pakistan for Dubai and would not be present at all on election day. He unexpectedly left the country and would not be addressing any party rallies or meetings. The PPP also announced that he will not return until after the elections are over.

The PPP's campaign was led by its Marxist leader Amin Fahim, accompanied by the notable leftist activists such as Taj Haider, Aitzaz Ahsan, Raza Rabbani, and Yousaf Gillani. The PPP ran the two different political programme, known as "Massawat" (lit. Egalitarianism) and "People’s Employment Programme" for the youth voters whilst it raised its vintage "Roti Kapra Aur Makaan (lit. Bread, Cloth, House) slogan during the election campaign. The PPP highlighted its implementation of the nationalization and welfare programs that were launched in 2008. In addition, the PPP greatly espouses towards the awareness of the industrial and labor rights, importance of the higher-education in the country, promotion of the social economics, foreign policy to built relations with Russia and Eastern Europe, counterterrorism legislation, efforts to reduce the gas shortages in the country. Generally, the PPP's main focused was on gathering its support from Sindh. In a critical editorial written in the English-language newspaper, The Nation, the PPP neglected to highlight the prevailing issue of energy conservation to reduce the repeated cycle of loadshedding in the country.

In Karachi and other parts of the country, the PPP also maintained a New Left alliance, comprising ANP, MQM, and Communist Party against the conservative parties in Sindh.

Pakistan Muslim League

The Pakistan Muslim League (N), a centre-right conservative party, began its campaign on terminating the energy conservation crises, and also the issues involving the national security, economic development, higher education, immigration, and taxation reforms. The campaign was led by Nawaz Sharif, who emphasis the success of the privatisation to alleviate youth employment and small businesses, introducing policies for the environmental preservation, building motorways, counterterrorism legislation, economic liberalization, improvement of the public transportation in all over the country, and then the decision of authorizing the nuclear-testing programme in 1998. Over several days, Sharif delivered speeches and visited in all over the country for the support, promising that: "Just like the nuclear blasts, conducted in our last tenure, made us an atomic power, an economic explosion in our next term will turn the country into a commercial powerhouse."

The PML(N) ran a political programme which was termed as "Ilmi aur Maashi Dhamaka" (lit. Education and Economic boom) at the public circles, and gained a lot of public support from all over the Punjab, and the financial support from the business community in Karachi, which proved to be a crucial factor in PML(N)'s efforts to gain majority in the elections. After delivering a victory speech on May 2013, Nawaz Sharif became Prime Minister for a third term on 5 June 2013 after receiving vote of confidence in the Parliament. He received 244 votes in the 342-seat parliament. The PML(N) was generally supported by PML(F) against the PPP in Sindh and BNP in Balochistan, also against the PPP. Terming it as "EEE programme" for Education, Energy, Economy, the PML(N) popularize its slogan "Stronger Economy–Strong Pakistan", which was released in 2012.

Addressing to the national via news channels representatives, the PML(N) debated that aside from balancing the energy conservation, ending stagflation as well inflation, and resolving the issues relating to counter-terrorism and national security, its quick economic recovery programmes is also aimed to increase the expenditure on education, health, food security, and "non-pension" social security from the annual GDP by 2018, as part of the policy measurement programmes.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf

Main article: Third Way

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is a [[Conservatism in Pakistan|Liberal conservative] political party with a mainstream political programme of supporting the "Third Way". In the midst of election campaign, the PTI's chairman, Imran Khan, decided to conduct an inter-party elections for the leadership of the PTI. Many renowned individuals were defeated in the intra-party elections, such as Arif Alvi who was replaced by Pervez Khattak as secretary-general and Ejaz Chaudhary who pulled off a surprise win against Ahsan Rasheed, Imran informed the media that no-one from his party will be eligible to hold the post of the party chairman for more than two terms. Motives behind this inter-party elections were to will ultimately finish off the "dynasty-type, family limited companies politics" from the country, as Imran Khan maintained.

The PTI rigorously campaigned on social awareness, social reforms, telecommunication, and the expansion of the e-government in all over the country. Other main points of PTI's campaign was to end the role of country in the War on Terrorism and to regulate private schools' fees structure with the quality of education they provide. The PTI also targeted the corruption that took place in state-owned enterprises after underwent through the nationalization programme, started in 2008 by the PPP.

During a campaign rally in Lahore, Imran fell 14 ft as he was stepping off an improvised forklift. He was seen to be bleeding and unconscious with a gash on his head. He was then taken to Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital where Imran was treated for two fractures to his spinal column. During the election process, the PTI was also leading a religio-political alliance, consisting of Jamaat-e-Islami and the fundamentalist MWM.

Pervez Musharraf

On 24 March 2013, former President Pervez Musharraf returned from self-imposed exile to lead the liberal APML and to run in the election despite threats from the far-right and extremist Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on his life, similar to the return of Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated shortly after returning.

On immediate basis, Musharraf's candidature was rejected from his home town of Karachi on the grounds that he violated the Constitution and that he had sacked senior judges during his presidency. Electoral returning officer Ikramur Rehman upheld the objections by his rivals. The liberal PML(Q) official, Afzal Agha, said "this is a biased decision." He was also rejected from the Kasur– a rural town in Punjab. However, he was later approved in the Chitral, also a rural town in Khyber–Pathtunkwa. On 8 April 2013, the Supreme Court issued a summon to be appear over in the apex court to face charges of treason and barred him from leaving the country.

On 16 April, an appeal for his approval from Chitral decided by a court in the provincial capital of Peshawar in which he was barred on the grounds that he violated the constitution by imposing emergency rule in 2007. His lawyer said that he would appeal to the Supreme Court. He was also ordered to be kept under house arrest for two weeks. On 23 April, He appeared at a Rawalpindi court under tight security on charges relating to the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. On 25 April, he was formally arrested for the same charge. The Peshawar High Court then banned him for life from taking part in politics activities. Chief Justice Dost Mohammad Khan said: "The former dictator [Musharraf] had ordered senior judges and their families be put under house arrest and twice abrogated the country's constitution." In reaction to the ban, a party spokeswoman for the All Pakistan Muslim League said that it would boycott the election. He was granted US$20,000 bail on 20 May.

Violence

Pre-election violence

The far-right extremist and terrorist organization, the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed the responsibility for two bombings at the offices of independent candidates on April 28. In Kohat, the TTP bombed left-wing ANP's Nasir Khan Afridi's office which killed six and critically wounded others. In the suburbs of Peshawar, a device bomb at killed three people. The next day, at least eight people, including the son of Afghani cleric Qazi Amin Waqad, were killed and 45 others were wounded in a suicide attack in Peshawar. The bomb had targeted Sahibzada Anees, a senior city administrator, who had just passed the area. Hilal was a part of the Afghan Hich Peace Council and was organizing a meeting of Afghan and Pakistani religious scholars to oppose militancy. The same day, at a Karachi press conference the leaders of the left-wing parties– the PPP, MQM and ANP– said that the attacks would not stop them from participating in the election. ANP's Secretary-General Bashir Jan said that his party had previously made sacrifices in relations to the 2012 assassination of Bashir Bilour, the former party leader. His statement followed an explosion that wounded three children near the election office of Mohammad Ahmed Khan, the ANP candidate from Charsadda in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. On 2 May, a bomb exploded outside the MQM headquarters in which seven people were injured. On 4 May, at least three people were killed and 34 others were wounded when two bombs targeted the election office of the MQM in the Azeezabad area of Karachi.

In a rally in Kurram Valley, at least 15 people were dead and over 50 injured at a JUI(F) rally for candidates Munir Orakzai and Ain-u-Dun Shakir. The rally was part of the faction led by Fazal-ur-Rehman. The latter was slightly wounded. Armed skirmishes and tensions also flared near the Afghanistan–Pakistan border. On 9 May, the son of former Prime Minister Yousef Raza Gilani, Ali Haider Gilani, was abducted following a gunfight at a rally in Multan that killed his personal secretary.

Election day violence

Main article: 2013 Pakistan election day bombings

Scattered gun and bomb attacks marred an otherwise celebratory day in a nation mired in economic crisis and locked in a fight with a virulent native Taliban insurgency. By the time polls closed in the evening, at least 20 people had died in attacks, the most serious targeting a pro-U.S. political party in the southern port city of Karachi. The violence, which included blasts outside a political office in Karachi that left 10 dead, capped a bloody election season. More than 130 people have been killed in bombings and shootings over the campaign, prompting some to call this one of the deadliest votes in the country's history.

Several bombs were reportedly defused before voting began on Saturday morning, according to al-Jazeera. No one had so far taken the responsibility for the attacks, except for the initial two blasts in the coastal city of Karachi, claimed by TTP.

Opinion polls

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf to play important role in next government.

— Najam Sethi, 2013

Various polls were conducted by different organizations, all of which show inconsistencies and different results.

In March 2013, a survey by Heinrich Böll Foundation showed that 29% of the people surveyed would support the Pakistan Peoples Party, the highest nummain opposition party, the Pakistan Muslim League (N), led by former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Another 20% supported the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led by former cricketer Imran Khan.

According to a survey conducted by Gallup Pakistan and PILDAT the Pakistan Muslim League topped the list on voting intention score in Punjab, followed by the PTI and the PPP respectively. The February 2013 political forecast is based on a nationwide poll of approximately 9660 voters in 300 villages and urban localities. The voting intention score of PML-N stands at 63% in North and Central Punjab, 69% in Western Punjab and 49% in Southern Punjab, shows the survey. According to the consolidated findings of two nationwide polls on voting intentions, conducted by IRI and Gallup Pakistan respectively during past three months, the front runner in Pakistan’s elections scheduled in mid-2013 is the PML-N. The PTI, according to the survey, is making deep inroads in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa where it has surpassed every other player by a 30% score.

Pakistan Peoples Party to emerge victorious on basis of performance.

— Qamar Zaman Kaira, 2013

In January 2013, an online poll conducted by Public Judgement showed that the PTI would win 66.1% of the total seats with PML-N coming in second place with 29.3% of seats. This would translate as PTI winning an outright majority of 225 seats in parliament. The online poll took place over 16 days and a total of 17,013 people participated in the poll.

PTI Chairman Imran Khan acknowledges sharp slide in his party’s popularity but attributes it to the party’s preoccupation with a gigantic task of intra-party elections. It took about 10 months during which the PTI almost suspended its activities. Imran is confident that the PTI will rebound soon for which a series of rallies has been planned beginning with Peshawar on March 10 on conclusion of elections for the Khyber Pakhtunkhawa (KP). On March 23, a massive rally was planned in Lahore which was expected to be attended by about 80,000 elected members at union council level across the country.

Senior political analyst, Najam Sethi said, Nawaz Sharif held public meetings and rallies in every nook and corner of the country while Shahbaz Sharif completed development projects in Punjab which attracted politicians from the other parties. Sethi said that the 3% raise in the popularity graph of the PPP was made possible due to Asif Ali Zardari's efforts who gathered many such politicians as used to oppose him. He said the popularity of both the parties increased due to the revival of the traditional politics and the same was the cause of decrease in popularity of unorthodox politicians like Imran Khan. However, Imran Khan’s next public meetings would help him a lot, Sethi predicted, saying that the PTI leader’s graph would go up after public rallies in Lahore and Peshawar and the party would play an important role in formation of the next government.

Support based on generation gap

Main article: Generation gap

The survey’s findings indicate that the PTI's support is derived from all age groups – 22.9 per cent of those between 18 to 35 years, 18.6 per cent of those between 36 to 50 years, 18.4 per cent of those between 51 to 70 years and 7.7 of those above 70 years support the PTI, dispelling the notion that its vote bank is rooted in the younger generation. The highest proportion of those aged between 36 to 50 years (32.5 per cent) indicate a preference for the PPP. Similarly, 46.2 per cent of those aged over 70 expressed a preference for the PML(N). Compared with respondents’ voting histories, the PML(N)’s vote bank appears to have remained stagnant while the PPP’s seems to have declined significantly. It appears that the PTI has a stronger urban base, while a higher proportion of rural respondents indicated that they would vote for either the PPP or the PML(N) in the upcoming elections.

Voting trends by ethnicity

Predictably, the highest level of support for the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party was pledged by Sindhis, 55% of whom said they would vote for the PPP in the upcoming elections. This was followed by Seraiki-speakers at 46%. Around ~44% of Hindko-speakers said they intend to vote for the Pakistan Muslim League (N), closely followed by Punjabi people at 43%. The same proportion of Hindko-speakers – 44% – also expressed an intention to vote for the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, indicating a close contest between the two parties (PMLN and PTI) within that particular demographic. It is worth noting that while 34% of Pakhtuns stated that they would vote for Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, only 11% expressed support for the Awami National Party (ANP). 47% of Balochis said that they would vote for the Balochistan National Party. The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) primarily derived its support base from the Urdu-speaking Muhajir community in Karachi.

Support based on household income

On average, approximately a third of those earning up to 30,000 rupees each month indicated a preference for the Pakistan Peoples Party whereas, among those earning more than 30,000 rupees, support for the party dropped to 10.8 percent. This is in keeping with the party’s traditional pro-poor image. No such trend could be determined for the Pakistan Muslim League (N), whose level of support remained similar across all income levels. Those earning in excess of 250,000 rupees each month (the highest identified income bracket in the survey) expressed the maximum intention to vote for either the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) or the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, at 33 per cent each. While this figure may appear anomalistic in the MQM’s case – support for the party within the second highest income bracket (those earning between 100,000 and 250,000 rupees each month) was only four per cent – it was possible to identify a rough direct trend between level of income and support for the PTI. In general, it appeared that support for smaller parties declined with increasing levels of income.

International monitor recommendations

The National Democratic Institution have stated the elections will be a “historical transition.” An NDI assessment mission — consisting of Canada’s former prime minister Joe Clark, former Indonesian House of Representatives member Nursanita Nasution, Chatham House senior fellow Xenia Dormandy and NDI Asia programmes director Peter Manikas — released its findings at a press briefing in Islamabad after its observation of Pakistan’s political framework.

The mission visited Pakistan from December 16 to December 21 and met with election authorities, government officials, party leaders, media and citizen monitoring groups. Joe Clark commended the cooperation of all parties, especially in adopting measures to bring the Federally Administered Tribal Areas under the political umbrella. Clark stated that the 18th Amendment to the constitution reflects the parliament’s integrity and commitment towards a fair democratic handover. Nursanita Nasution highlighted the need to address the rights of women in the polling process so that “fear and intimidation in high-risk areas such as Baluchistan, FATA, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Karachi” would not strip women of the opportunity to vote. Xenia Dormandy suggested “improving accessibility and adjusting locations” of women polling stations closer to those for men so that they could travel with the men in their families to vote. Sandra Houston, Regional Director of NDI, stated “We are impressed with the cooperation of all the stakeholders in assuring a smooth transition,” sharing that voters have been registered with Computerised National Identity Cards and biometrics including photographs where possible.

European Union

The European Union offered to send its observers to Pakistan’s elections, in a bid to ensure a “peaceful, credible” vote that will be “acceptable” to all. “The EU looks forward to upcoming elections that are peaceful, credible, transparent, inclusive and acceptable to the Pakistani people,” EU foreign ministers said in a statement released after talks. The 27-nation bloc “is ready to assist by deploying an election observation mission, as a tangible sign of our support for the democratic process,” the statement added. The ministers also said they looked forward to re-energizing ties with the next government and hoped quick contacts could lead to a third EU-Pakistan summit. Pakistan responded by saying it will welcome a European Union election observation mission during the forthcoming general elections.“Yes, we will welcome the observation mission”, foreign secretary Jalil Abbas Jilani said.

A 110-member team from the European Union will observe Pakistan's elections. The European Union High Representative and Vice President of the European Commission, Ms. Catherine Ashton, has decided to authorize a European Union Election Observation Mission (EOM) to observe the elections. A member of the European Parliament will lead the 2013 EU EOM as its Chief Observer. The EU EOM team will include observers, experts, election analysts, political analysts, legal analysts, human rights analysts, media analysts and others. On the basis of special agreements with the EU, observers from Norway, Switzerland and Canada are also part of the EOM. Some members will be deployed well in advance of election day, while others will be deployed at least ten days prior to the election day.

The observers will assess aspects of the election process, nomination of candidates, election campaign, counting, tabulation, announcement of official results and complaints' procedures, and will cover pre-election preparations, election-day itself and the post-electoral period. The observers will follow the political campaign and hold regular meetings with representatives of election management bodies, political parties, candidates and civil society groups.

United States

The US Ambassador to Pakistan Richard Olsen stated that the United States applauds democratic tendencies in Pakistan, expressing hopes that free and fair general elections would lead to peaceful transfer of authority from one civilian government to successor dispensation. Completion of the current term by a democratically elected government will be a milestone in Pakistan’s history.

A U.S. delegation consisting of Senator Carl Levin, US Ambassador to Pakistan Richard Olsen and Armed Services Committee Senator Jack Reed visited Pakistan on 8 January for talks with Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf. The delegation stated that not only the U.S., but the world would observe the general election with great interest.

The Centre for American Progress published a report called “Previewing Pakistan’s 2013 Elections” whose author, Colin Cookman, writes that the United States should work with, and not attempt to control Pakistan’s internal political processes. The report also warns that whoever wins the elections should try to resolve the problems the country faces or be prepared to face accountability. Cookman states that “only Pakistanis themselves are capable of establishing a more stable, democratic system capable of balancing diverse interest groups and effectively addressing the country’s challenges.”

It encourages the US to make efforts to support Pakistan’s democratic evolution and the success of its upcoming elections. Such efforts should include a public commitment to neutrality and respect for the electoral processes, coupled with support for an international observation mission. It also urges US diplomatic and military officials to continue to engage with a broad array of Pakistani civilian leaders and military officials, while making it clear that the United States “does not favour any specific electoral outcome and strongly opposes any disruption of the constitutional process or intervention during the caretaker period.”

US officials have denied the general perception in Pakistan that the US government wants to influence the electoral process in Pakistan to bring in a friendly government. US Secretary of State John Kerry skipped a planned visit to Pakistan to avoid accusations of meddling in the May 11 elections. Spokesperson Victoria Nuland stated that the message the United States wants to send out during the election season is “we have no favourites among Pakistani politicians and we are looking forward to work with whoever is elected on May 11.” Secretary Kerry’s decision to skip Pakistan during his South Asia visit is an indication of Washington’s eagerness to maintain neutrality during the elections.

Results

Statistics and database collected and published by the Election Commission (EC), approximately ~86.9 million Pakistanis were registered to vote. Overall, the Voter turnout was 55.02%, the highest since 1970 and 1977.

The Election Commission results were broadcast by news channels who announced the PML(N) had emerged with a popular and landslide victory, with 189 seats, winning four times as many seats as its competitor, the PPP. Though, it fell short for a supermajority in the Parliament. The PPP emerged as the second largest party, with 45 seats, and the PTI, with 33 seats, emerged as third largest party.

Incidents of rigging

• Najam Sethi, an anchorperson and the senior journalist of Geo News, who was appointed interim Chief Minister and oversaw the election process in Punjab where most of the alleged rigging is believed to have taken place. Sethi was reportedly overheard on a call to PM Nawaz Sharif of the PML-N that he had planted 35 punctures in the election, alleging that bureaucrats had been shifted to favour the PML-N over the PTI in Pakistan's battleground provinces. This despite the fact that the role of Sethi was supposed to be one of no bias. The independent Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) has also alleged that Sethi role has contributed to election rigging
• The Election Commission confirming that it did not even have the voter record of 139 constituencies. Around half of the elected seats, and confirmed that 70 of the incidents were in Punjab. On most of the rigged seats, the PML-N defeated the PTI
• The Chief Election Commissioner conceded that the Election Commission had failed to conduct free and fair elections in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city of 20 million and it's main economic hub.
• The Chief election Commissioner resigned, citing extreme judicial interference preventing the investigation of voter irregularities.
• The Election Commission admitted that it had no control of the Returning officers, the persons responsible for overseeing the election at individual polling stations.
• The PTI demanded the thumb verification be held in four constituencies - in order to check if the votes were genuine or bogus. The PMLN refused, ostensibly due to cost, despite the fact that the PTI offered to pay
• A candidate for PTI paid ₨.5 million to have his votes verified. The election commission then confirmed that 265 bags of votes were bogus and only 69 were genuine. The PTI candidate was defeated by the PML-N candidate.
• A candidate of JUI-F was disqualified after it was learned that there had been rigging on 28 different women's polling stations.

Incidents of improper investigations

• The PML-N has been accused of hindering the bureaucracy's ability to carry out Free and fair elections, Tariq Malik, the chairman of NADRA was fired by Nawaz Sharif after he announced that NADRA had the technology to verify votes through thumbprint verification The Islamabad High Court had him restored to his position, after which Tariq Malik resigned alleging that he had been threatened with kidnapping of him and his family by those who did not want the election process verified.
• After Tariq Malik's sacking. It emerged that someone had broken into NADRA's office and tampered with the ballot boxes of seat NA-118 (Lahore) which was at the centre of the rigging allegations. The boxes had been moved to NADRA so that the votes could be thumb verified, as demanded by the PTI, but had instead been tampered with. This has led to accusations by the opposition that the civil service is either under extreme pressure or incompetent in adjudicating disputes

Incidents of incompetence

• The election commission confirmed that there was a "typing error" on NA-68. PM Nawaz Sharif's winning seat, it emerged that the PM had received only 779 votes rather than 7879 as originally recorded. This has led to accusations of incompetence which has compromised the fairness of the elections
• They announced this a whole year after the PTI, led by Imran Khan demanded an investigation, which has led to accusations of critical inefficiency at the ECP.

NGO's on irregularities & rigging

• The Free and Fair election network. A combination of 3 dozen NGOs has alleged that there had been 71,937 electoral irregularities.
• The FAFEN has confirmed that there were at least 5000 critical irregularities, which compromised the electoral process.[1]

National Assembly

Further information: List of Pakistan National Assembly seats

Electoral results for the National Assembly
Political Parties	Popular vote	Percentage	General seats	Reserved		Total Seats +/–
				Women	Minorities
Pakistan Muslim League (N)	14,874,104	32.77%	126	34	6	166[a]
Pakistan Peoples Party	6,911,218	15.23%	33	1	8	44
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf	7,679,954	16.92%	28	1	6	35
Muttahida Qaumi Movement	2,456,153	5.41%	19	1	4	23
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F)	1,461,371	3.22%	11	1	3	15
Pakistan Muslim League (Q)	1,409,905	3.11%	2	0	0	2
Pakistan Muslim League (F)	1,072,846	2.36%	5	0	1	6
Jamaat-e-Islami	963,909	2.12%	3	0	1	4
Awami National Party	453,057	1.00%	1	0	0	1
Mutahida Deeni Mahaz	360,297	0.79%	0	0	0	0
Pakhtun-khwa Milli Awami Party	214,631	0.47%	3	0	1	4
National Peoples Party	197,829	0.44%	2	0	1	3
Pakistan Muslim League (Z)	128,510	0.28%	1	0	0	1
Bahawalpur National Awami Party	113,365	0.25%	0	0	0	0
Jamiat Ulama-e-Islam Nazryati	103,098	0.23%	0	0	0	0
Awami Muslim League	93,046	0.20%	1	0	0	1
Sindh United Party	82,634	0.18%	0	0	0	0
Tehreek-e-Tahaffuz-e-Pakistan	76,358	0.17%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (J)	71,773	0.16%	0	0	0	0
Awami Jamhuri Ittehad Pakistan	71,175	0.16%	1	0	0	1
Jamiat Ulma-e-Pakistan	67,966	0.15%	0	0	0	0
Balochistan National Party	63,979	0.14%	1	0	0	1
National Party (Pakistan)	61,148	0.13%	1	0	0	1
All Pakistan Muslim League	54,231	0.12%	1	0	0	1
Pakistan National Muslim League	52,398	0.12%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Peoples Party (Shaheed Bhutto)	50,046	0.11%	0	0	0	0
Qaumi Watan Party	46,574	0.10%	1	0	0	1
Tehreek-e-Suba Hazara	43,265	0.10%	0	0	0	0
Majlis-e-Wahdat-e-Muslimeen	41,520	0.09%	0	0	0	0
Sunni Ittehad Council	37,732	0.08%	0	0	0	0
Sunni Tehreek	25,485	0.06%	0	0	0	0
Sindh Taraqi Passand Party	23,397	0.05%	0	0	0	0
Qoumi Wattan Party	19,253	0.04%	0	0	0	0
Awami Workers Party	18,650	0.04%	0	0	0	0
Balochistan National Party (Awami)	12,866	0.03%	0	0	0	0
Hazara Democratic Party	11,052	0.02%	0	0	0	0
Mohajir Qaumi Movement	10,575	0.02%	0	0	0	0
Jamote Qaumi Movement	10,468	0.02%	0	0	0	0
Saraiki Party	5,236	0.01%	0	0	0	0
Kissan Ittehad	4,367	0.01%	0	0	0	0
Falah Party	4,207	0.01%	0	0	0	0
Awami Justice Party	3,803	0.01%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Justice Party	3,230	0.01%	0	0	0	0
Islamli Tehreek	2,694	0.01%	0	0	0	0
Christian Progressive Movement	2,523	0.01%	0	0	0	0
Mohib-e-Wattan Nowjawan Inqilabion Ki Anjuman	2,503	0.01%	0	0	0	0
Mutahidda Qabil Party	2,399	0.01%	0	0	0	0
Qaumi Tahaffaz Party	2,202	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Mustaqbil Pakistan	2,052	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Sairkistan Qaumi Ittehad	1,890	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Seraiki Sooba Movement	1,797	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Awami Workers Party	1,657	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Jamhoori Wattan Party	1,632	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Karwan-i-Millat	1,412	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Jannat Pakistan Party	1,269	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Tehreek Tabdili Nizam	1,164	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (SB)	1,063	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Insani Haqook Party	989	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Patriotic Movement	948	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (S)	890	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Markazi Jamiat Mushaikh	833	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Conservative Party	794	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Tehreek-e-Istehkaam	651	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Islamic Republican Party	631	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Tehrek-e-Inqalab	593	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Tehreek-e-Ittehad Ummat	583	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pak Justice Party	537	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Freedom Party	502	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Roshan Pakistan Muhaibban Wattan Party	493	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (H)	472	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Mutahida Baloch Movement	471	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Menecracy Action Party	447	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Awami Himayat Tehreek	330	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Islami Inqalab Party	274	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Human Rights Party	266	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Jamiat Ulama-e-Islam (S)	258	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Gharib Party	256	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Sindh Dost Ittehad Party	250	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Istehkaam-e-Pakistan	240	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pak Wattan Party	220	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Istiqlal Party	218	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Hazara Awami Ittehad	214	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan National Democratic Party	191	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Communist Party of Pakistan	191	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Ghareeb Awam Party	174	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (M)	172	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (C)	152	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Afgan Qomi Movement	152	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Brohi Party	149	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muhajir League	134	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muhafiz Watan Party	126	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Azad Pakistan Party	116	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (Zehri)	101	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Tehrik-e-Masawaat	99	0.00%	0	0	0	0
All Pakistan Bayrozgar Party	89	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Aman Party	71	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Mutthuda Majlis-e-Amal	69	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Motherland Party	68	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (H)	64	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Qaumi Party	55	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Islami Justice Party	54	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Tehreek-e-Wafaq	48	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Salam Pakistan Party	34	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Aap Janab Sarkar Party	30	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Jamiat Ulma-e-Pakistan (Niazi)	27	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muhammadi Party	24	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Aalay Kalam Ullah Farman Rasool	15	0.00%	0	0	0	0
All Pakistan Youth Working Party	14	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Punjab National Party	13	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Awami Quwat Party	9	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Awami Inqalab	7	0.00%	0	0	0	0
Independents	5,880,658	12.96%	27	0	0	27[a]
Repoll ordered	–	–	3	–	–	3
Postponed/terminated/withheld	–	–	5	–	1	6
Total	45,388,404	100%	272	10	60	342
Registered voters and Voter turnout	84,207,524	+55.02%	–	–	–	–
Statistical Data Source(s): ECP (elected seats), ECP (minority seats), ECP (women seats), ECP (votes)

^a Following the elections, 19 independents joined PML(N).

By-Elections

By elections were held on 22 August 2013 for the seats either vacated by MPs who had won from more than onie constituency or those constituencies where the previous result and polling was disqualified by Election Commission. Voting for 41 constituencies of the national and provincial assemblies saw the PML-N emerge as overall victors. More than 500 candidates holding tickets of different political parties as well as independents ran for 15 National Assembly and 26 provincial assembly seats.

Party	Punjab	Sindh	Balochistan	Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	National Assembly
Pakistan Muslim League (N)	11	0	2	0	5
Pakistan Peoples Party	2	1	0	0	3
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf	2	0	0	0	6
Muttahida Qaumi Movement	0	3	0	0	1
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam	0	0	0	1	0
Awami National Party	0	0	0	1	1
Pakhtun-khwa Milli Awami Party	0	0	0	0	1
Independents	0	0	1	2	0
Total	15	4	3	4	15

By province and territory

Party	Punjab	Sindh	Balochistan	Khyber Pakhtunkhwa	FATA	Islamabad
Pakistan Muslim League (N)	214	4	8	12	1	1
Pakistan Peoples Party	6	69	0	3	0	0
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf	24	3	1	39	2	1
Muttahida Qaumi Movement	0	34	0	0	0	0
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam	0	0	0	13	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (F)	0	6	0	0	0	0
Jamaat-e-Islami	1	0	0	7	0	0
Pakhtun-khwa Milli Awami Party	0	0	10	0	0	0
National Peoples Party	0	2	0	0	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (Q)	7	0	2	0	0	0
National Party (Pakistan)	0	0	6	0	0	0
Awami National Party	0	0	1	5	0	0
Balochistan National Party	0	0	2	0	0	0
All Pakistan Muslim League	0	0	0	1	0	0
Pakistan Muslim League (Z)	2	0	0	0	0	0
Awami Muslim League	0	0	0	0	0	0
Qaumi Watan Party	0	0	0	7	0	0
Awami Jamhuri Ittehad Pakistan	0	0	0	3	0	0
Bahawalpur National Awami Party	1	0	0	0	0	0
Jamote Qaumi Movement	0	0	2	0	0	0
Majlis-e-Wahdat-e-Muslimeen	0	0	1	0	0	0
Pakistan National Muslim League	1	0	0	0	0	0
Independents	39	6	7	14	6	0
Results awaited	8	13	6	0
Elections postponed	2	1	1	0
Total	297	130	51	99	9	2

A supporter of PMLN in NA 49 Islamabad, in Model Town Hummak, on the roof of a car rising his party flag and announcing the triumph of his party in that area

Reactions

Domestic

On the night of the elections, the youth supporter, partisans, and lobbyists gathered in Raiwand– a private residential place of president of the PML (N), Nawaz Sharif. Speaking to his supporters and media representatives, Nawaz Sharif who was standing with his daughter and wife, Sharif said:

Through this vote and campaign, I have felt how much love Pakistan has for me. And I have twice as much love for you. Thank God that he has given us the chance to help you, to help Pakistan, to help the young people. We will fulfill all the promises that we have made. Pray that we can make a government on our own, without compromises or have to lean on anyone else. Because if we have to ask for seats, we cannot make a strong government. We forgive anyone who has abused us along the way and we have not cursed anyone. We want to get Pakistan out of trouble. We have a program to change the State of Pakistan. We must make a decision to change this country. To all other parties, I say come and sit at the table.

— Nawaz Sharif, on 11 May 2013, source

The Chief Election Commissioner Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim expressed gratitude to the voters for the record high turnout of 60%. Secretary of the Election Commission Ishtiaq Ahmed Khan said that the elections were free, fair and transparent and the claims of irregularities will be answered on a case-by-case basis.

Even before the result was announced, the PTI conceded defeat. PTI leader Imran Khan congratulated PML (N) leader Nawaz Sharif on his victory.

MQM leader Altaf Hussain spoke to PML (N). He also called then the ‘Punjabis representative party.' He went on to say that the “Muslim League (N) has emerged victorious in the elections and Nawaz Sharif is a representative leader of the Punjabis.” His statements were condemned by some in the Pakistani media and from supporters of the PML (N).

Military analyst and security expert Talat Masood said: "This is an ideal and a graceful victory for Sharif. He will form a strong government at the center, which is badly needed to tackle some enormous economic and security challenges."

President Asif Ali Zardari blamed the poor performance of PPP on a domestic and international conspiracy, as well as domestic terrorism by the Taliban preventing the party from campaigning.

Economic

The country's stocks rose to record and the economic indicators performed well in advance of the unofficially determined results in an expectation of PML(N)'s win.

Upon news of the results, the KSE 100 at the Karachi Stock Exchange crossed the 20,000 mark for the first time on Monday 13 May. The victory by PML(N) in the general election lifted the stock market to an all-time high on 11–13 May, in a sign that investors, which include Goldman Sachs and Mark Mobius of Templeton, were seen as the top foreign investors at the Karachi Stock Exchange on the prospect of further market gains through a stable government. On the day of the elections, the benchmark KSE 100 Index gained 1.8%, the most since March 12, ~20,272.28 Marks, taking its rally this year to 20 percent. The MCB Ltd. gained ~4.9% to ₨. 261.60 million, poised for the highest close since May 2008. The Pakistan State Oil (PSO) jumped 5.0% to ₨. 221.86 million; the ABL Asset also increased its profit variation to $203 million.

International

Supranational bodies

• European Union – High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton called the election an "historic victory" for democracy in the country. "I wish to congratulate the people of Pakistan. The 2013 general election marks a historic victory for the democratic life on their country. Despite an extremely difficult security environment and threats from extremists, voters turned out in unprecedented numbers with many Pakistani citizens voting for the first time. All the main stakeholders, in particular the political parties and state institutions, acted in a responsible manner, demonstrating their support for democracy and the holding of the elections."

• United Nations – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon congratulated the government and people of Pakistan on the successful conduction of national and provincial elections, hailing the polls, for which millions of voters turned out, as a major democratic step. “This is the first ever transition from one civilian government to another and a significant step forward for democracy in the country. By exercising their constitutional right to vote, the people of Pakistan have reaffirmed their desire for and commitment to a democratic Pakistan and their respect for the constitution of the country."

States

• Afghanistan – President Hamid Karzai telephoned PML (N) leader Nawaz Sharif and congratulated him on his party triumph in the general elections. The Afghan President also expressed well wishes for Nawaz Sharif and his party. Karzai said that he was optimistic that ties between two brotherly countries would be friendly after Nawaz take charge of Premier office. Nawaz vowed that Pakistan would take every step to improve its relationship with all neighbors especially with Afghanistan.

• China – President Xi Jinping and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs congratulated Nawaz Sharif. Spokesman Hong Lei said the Chinese government were happy to see steady and smooth elections in Pakistan. "As China’s all-weather friend, China will continue to support Pakistan’s efforts to maintain stability and achieve development. Sino-Pakistani friendly and cooperative relations will enter into a new high with the efforts by the two sides."

• India – Prime Minister Manmohan Singh congratulated Nawaz Sharif on his "emphatic victory" in the historic elections and said he hoped for better relations. Singh wrote on his official Twitter account: "Congratulations to Mr. Nawaz Sharif and his party for their emphatic victory in Pakistan's elections". He said he hoped to work with Sharif to chart "a new course for the relationship" between the nuclear-armed neighbours and invited him to "visit India at a mutually convenient time."

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah congratulated Nawaz Sharif for his party's performance and hoped that he would live up to his commitment to restart the peace process with India.

The opposition BJP congratulated Mr. Nawaz Sharif on his historic electoral victory

• Saudi Arabia – The royal family greeted Nawaz Sharif on his thumping victory in the elections. Sources said that Saudi personalities congratulating Nawaz Sharif have expressed their well wishes for him.

• Sri Lanka – President Mahinda Rajapaksa telephoned Nawaz Sharif and congratulated him on his victory in historic election.

• Iran – Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Araghchi congratulated Pakistan for successful elections and for Sharif’s ability to win the people’s trust. Araqchi further pointed to the close relations between Iran and Pakistan and hoped for further expansion of bilateral relations between the two neighbouring countries.

• Turkey – Both President Abdullah Gul and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan made separate phone calls to Nawaz Sharif and felicitated him on his victory.

• United Arab Emirates – Sheikh Khalifa congratulated Nawaz Sharif on his victory in the elections.

• United Kingdom – Prime Minister David Cameron congratulated Nawaz Sharif on his resounding election victory and praised his commitment to economic reforms. Cameron spoke to Sharif on the telephone and they agreed to work to reinforce the “strong bond” between their two countries. They also pledged their commitment to the trilateral process, the three-way talks between Britain, Pakistan and Afghanistan aimed at finding peace in Afghanistan, where Britain is starting to reduce its 9,000-strong troop presence. The Prime Minister and Nawaz Sharif agreed that the strong bond between the UK and Pakistan was a huge asset and that they would work together to strengthen the relationship further. Cameron welcomed Nawaz Sharif’s commitment to prioritise economic reforms. The two leaders also agreed on their shared commitment to the trilateral process and its importance in achieving peace in Afghanistan and the wider region.

• United States – President Barack Obama praised Pakistanis for upholding their commitment to democratic rule by successfully completing the elections. Obama hailed "this historic peaceful and transparent transfer of civilian power." He said Pakistanis ran competitive campaigns and persevered despite "intimidation by violent extremists." Three days later, Obama called Sharif over the phone and again congratulated him on his party’s election victory. “The US president said his country respects the mandate given to Nawaz Sharif in the elections.” US Secretary of State John Kerry called Sharif on the phone to congratulate him on his strong showing in Saturday's elections. Kerry also told Sharif that he looks forward to working with the government as the government is formed in Pakistan. Kerry is hoping to visit Pakistan soon, once the new government is in place.

Analysis

Aftermath

On 17 May 2013, the Vice-president of the PTI, Zahra Hussain, was shot and killed in Karachi just before re-election was due to be held. Three days later it was announced that the PTI had taken the Karachi seat in re-polling. Imran Khan alleged that Altaf Hussain was responsible for inciting violence and was responsible for the murder. Few days later British Police raided Altaf Hussain's house.

Government formation

Further information: Sharif III Government

The PML(N)'s key strategist, Sartaj Aziz, announced in news media the next day that the independents candidates were in negotiation process with the PML(N) to join the party in order to form the government and to work out "a few key portfolios."

A total of nineteenth independents who had won from their respected constituencies joined the PML(N), which allowed the party to form a government with a simple majority. This swing ultimately led to Nawaz Sharif elevated as the Prime Minister. Soon after his appointment, Sharif said after being formally approved as Prime Minister that in regards to drone strikes: "We respect the sovereignty of others and they should also respect our sovereignty and independence. This campaign should come to an end." Despite this, two days later another drone strike killed seven people in Pakistan.

External links

• Pakistan: Putting Democracy to the Test, Al Jazeera episode of Inside Story