Election 2024: Imran Khan’s PTI-backed candidates stuns Nawaz Sharif’s PMLN

Imran Khan, the former prime minister who is currently imprisoned, has independents supported by his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party ahead in several constituencies nationwide.

These candidates are presenting a strong competition to Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N, particularly in their main base of Punjab.

This comes according to early trends from the elections, which have seen instances of isolated violence.

The polling started at 8.00 AM and continued without any break till 5.00 PM. A countrywide public holiday was declared to enable more than 12 crore voters to cast their ballots. The polling percentage is not yet known. In the 2018 elections, overall voter turnout across the nation was 51.7 per cent.

In Sindh, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) candidates hold the lead in the majority of electoral districts, with party leaders Bilawal and Asif Ali Zardari out in front within their respective areas. However, Karachi, the provincial capital with 22 National Assembly seats, presents a varied picture, with Muttahida Qaumi Movement and PTI candidates exhibiting stronger performances.

In the province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, independents backed by the PTI are topping the charts in most of the national and provincial legislature seats. Ali Muhammad Khan, a former PTI minister, is ahead in Mardan, while Asad Qaisar, another PTI heavyweight and past National Assembly speaker, holds a lead in Swabi. The Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl group, led by Maulana Fazlur Rehman, is also marking successes in certain areas.

Balochistan, despite being the largest province, contributes only 15 parliamentarians and is currently displaying a range of outcomes with no definitive frontrunner emerging from the fray.