ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI) has emerged as the largest party in Cantonment Boards’ elections across the country with 63 seats.
According to the unofficial preliminary results, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has secured 59 seats followed by 52 seats by independent candidates.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has managed to win 17 seats and Mutahidda Quami Movement (MQM-P) got ten seats. Jamat-i-Islami has also won seven seats while Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) and Awami National Party (ANP) got two seats each.
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain said the Cantonment Boards’ elections have again proved that PTI is the only party which enjoys vote in every nook and corner of the country.
He said the cantonment boards’ election results show that the opposition has left with no standing following the crushing defeat. He said the contest in the elections was between the PTI ticket holders and the workers, who could not get party tickets and they vied in the polls as independents.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has appreciated all law enforcement agencies, Police and provincial and district administrations for the peaceful conduct of Cantonment Boards’ elections.
The commission also lauded Defence Ministry for cooperation in ensuring law and order during polling process. It expressed hope to conduct Local Government elections in the country soon with the cooperation of federal and provincial governments.
PTI won the most number of seats in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (18) followed by 28 in Punjab, 14 in Sindh and three in Balochistan. PML-N clinched 51 seats in Punjab, managing only five in KP, three in Sindh and none in Balochistan.
PPP won 14 seats in Sindh while the remaining three seats were won in KP and none in either Punjab or Balochistan. Independent candidates scored big in Punjab, bagging 32 seats. They secured nine in KP, seven in Sindh and four in Balochistan.
MQM won all of its 10 seats in Sindh, whereas JI won five in Sindh and two in Punjab. ANP won two seats in KP, whereas BAP won two in Balochistan.
A total of 684 independent candidates from across the country were in the run while 876 candidates from political parties were contesting.
The highest number of candidates (183) were fielded by PTI, while 144 were from PML-N, 113 from PPP, 104 from Jamaat-e-Islami, 42 from MQM, 35 from Pak Sarzameen Party, 34 from PML-Q, and 25 candidates from JUI-F.
The candidates were vying for a total 219 wards across 42 cantonment boards. Seven candidates were already elected unopposed and the election was held for 212 seats. There was no competition in four wards of Kamra, one ward of Rawalpindi and one ward of Pano Aqil.
The polling process started at 8am and continued till 5pm. The voting was held peacefully except for a sporadic incident of violence at some polling stations. Voters inside the polling station were able to cast their votes despite polling time ending. The gates were closed for those queued outside.
