Pakistan General Elections 2024: All you need to know about the voting process and key candidates

Pakistan will choose a new government after the highly-anticipated general elections on Thursday (Feb 8). The parliamentary democratic nationwill vote in the federal legislature or House Assembly and four state legislatures.

A total of 44 political parties with 5,121 candidates are competing in the federal legislature, while 12,695 candidates are running for the four provincial assemblies in Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Additionally, out of the total population of 241 million, 128 million people above 18 years old are eligible to vote.

Although the official results of the general elections will be declared on Friday (Feb 9), the results will start coming fromThursday (Feb 8).

Pakistan Elections 2024: Voting Process

Pakistan's National Assembly has a total of 336 seats. Out of these, only 266 candidates are elected. The rest 70 are reserved, of which 60 are for women while 10 are for non-Muslims. These reserved seats are allocated as per the strength of each political party in the Assembly.

The winning candidates become members of the National Assembly. However, independent candidates can join any party after the voting process.

The elected National Assembly members select the leader of the House or the prime minister of Pakistan after the results are declared.

A PM candidate must have a majority in the House. This means they would need the vote of at least 169 members in the National Assembly. The need for a coalition government arises when no single party has the requisite numbers for majority.

Pakistan Elections 2024: Key Candidates

Currently, three major political parties dominate Pakistan's political scenario. They are Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

• Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz is one of the top contenders in the race. Two former prime ministers, Nawaz Sharif and his younger brother Shehbaz Sharif, are heading the PML-N.
• Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari-led PPP is an ally of the PML-N. The party has a strong base in south Pakistan. However, Bilawal is not popular enough to garnervotes to become prime minister, as per AP. He could hold a position in the coalition government if Nawaz Sharif wins.
• Imran Khan, the founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), will be absent from the political race due to four criminal convictions. He is now ineligible to participate in these elections or assume public office.

(With inputs from agencies)