2013 Pakistani general election


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, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Elections were held in all four provinces, Islamabad's federal capital territory 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. Allegations on systematic vote rigging, favouritism, and ethnicity trends on political parties marred with controversy regarding the nationwide elections; this eventually led to anti-government march that called for electoral reforms in 2014.
The fifth largest democracy and second largest Muslim democracy after Indonesia in the world, 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. 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 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. Initial results saw the hung parliament for a second consecutive general election—the first being the prior general election in 2008. Potential for a hung parliament was widely considered and predicted as both countries' politicians were better prepared for the constitutional process that would follow such a result, in contrast to 2008.
Speculations for the potential hung parliament were dismissed when the independent candidates joined the PML which allowed that party to form 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 in Nawaz Sharif becoming the new Prime Minister of Pakistan.
Prior to the elections, the centre-left PPP formed an alliance with PML, while on the conservative side, the PML allied with PML and Baloch parties. Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan led the centrist PTI, and the Jamaat-e-Islami also participated in the elections. PPP and PML saw their vote share plummet, both being essentially wiped out in Punjab.

Background

By Constitution's stipulation on Time of conducting elections in the country, Elections in Pakistan| elections are to be held at an interval of five years or whenever parliament is dissolved by the President. Upon dissolution of the National Assembly, 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 in 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 ~50,000 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 and 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

With assistance from the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, the Election Commission of Pakistan announced the printing of computerised electoral rolls, the first of its kind database which resulted in the elimination of 35 million bogus voters off the list.

Schedule

Following the recommendations in Article 224 of the constitution of Pakistan, there arose a need to form a caretaker government to operate in the interim period between the normal dissolution of parliament, facilitating the election process, until a new government was formed after the election results were known. To this effect, prime minister Pervez Ashraf wrote a letter to the opposition leader Nisar Ali Khan, requesting him to propose names of persons for appointment as the caretaker prime minister.
The Pakistan Muslim League , Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan, Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam all agreed on the name of retired senior justice Nasir Aslam Zahid as the caretaker PM until the elections take place. After a failure to achieve a consensus between the PPP government and the opposition, the matter was forwarded to a parliamentary committee of four members from both the government and the opposition.
Under the provision of Article 224-A of the constitution, the Election Commission announced the appointment of retired Federal Shariat Court chief justice Mir Hazar Khan Khoso on 24 March 2013 in a press conference held by chief election commissioner Fakhruddin G Ebrahim. Consequently, Khoso was sworn into office as the caretaker prime minister on 25 March 2013, while his caretaker federal cabinet was sworn into office on 2 April 2013.

Registered voters

Following is the final list of registered voters in each district of Pakistan who are eligible to cast their vote.
ProvinceDistrictNo. of VotersSeat No
BalochistanAwaran56,387NA-270
BalochistanBarkhan55,327NA-263
BalochistanChagai66,836NA-260
BalochistanDera Bugti63,953NA-265
BalochistanGwadar93,650NA-272
BalochistanHarnai33,140NA-265
BalochistanJaffarabad247,316NA-266
BalochistanJhal Magsi44,533NA-267
BalochistanKachhi 103,108NA-267
BalochistanKalat104,445NA-268
BalochistanKech173,972NA-272
BalochistanKharan45,176NA-271
BalochistanKhuzdar165,593NA-269
BalochistanKilla Abdullah184,832NA-262
BalochistanKilla Saifullah88,424NA-264
BalochistanKohlu38,624NA-265
BalochistanLasbela182,697NA-270
BalochistanLoralai107,028NA-263
BalochistanMastung80,118NA-268
BalochistanMusakhel51,864NA-263
BalochistanNasirabad162,349NA-266
BalochistanNushki61,878NA-260
BalochistanPanjgur74,751NA-271
BalochistanPishin196,859NA-261
BalochistanQuetta559,939NA-259
BalochistanSherani31,837NA-264
BalochistanSibi75,832NA-265
BalochistanWashuk38,171NA-271
BalochistanZhob96,278NA-264
BalochistanZiarat51,742NA-261
BALOCHISTANTOTAL3,336,659NA-259 to NA-272
FATABajaur Agency353,554NA-43, NA-44
FATAF.R. Bannu9,482NA-47
FATAF.R. D. I. Khan22,269NA-47
FATAF.R. Kohat41,070NA-47
FATAF.R. Lakki Marwat9,939NA-47
FATAF.R. Peshawar23,371NA-47
FATAF.R. Tank15,581NA-47
FATAKhyber Agency336,763NA-45, NA-46
FATAKurram Agency262,021NA-37, NA-38
FATAMohmand Agency177,244NA-36
FATANorth Waziristan Agency160,666NA-40
FATAOrakzai Agency125,687NA-39
FATASouth Waziristan Agency200,666NA-41, NA-42
FATATOTAL1,738,313NA-36 to NA-47
Federal AreaIslamabad625,964NA-48, NA-49
Khyber PakhtunkhwaAbbottabad675,188NA-17, NA-18
Khyber PakhtunkhwaBannu444,059NA-26
Khyber PakhtunkhwaBatagram204,980NA-22
Khyber PakhtunkhwaBuner360,019NA-28
Khyber PakhtunkhwaCharsadda704,680NA-7, NA-8
Khyber PakhtunkhwaChitral206,909NA-32
Khyber PakhtunkhwaD. I. Khan606,959NA-24
Khyber PakhtunkhwaHangu214,703NA-16
Khyber PakhtunkhwaHaripur531,866NA-19
Khyber PakhtunkhwaKarak315,087NA-15
Khyber PakhtunkhwaKohat409,372NA-14
Khyber PakhtunkhwaKohistan127,015NA-23
Khyber PakhtunkhwaLakki Marwat330,274NA-27
Khyber PakhtunkhwaLower Dir541,565NA-34
Khyber PakhtunkhwaMalakand311,172NA-35
Khyber PakhtunkhwaMansehra742,674NA-20
Khyber PakhtunkhwaMardan987,122NA-9, NA-10, NA-11
Khyber PakhtunkhwaNowshera619,914NA-5, NA-6
Khyber PakhtunkhwaPeshawar1,393,144NA-1, NA-2, NA-3, NA-4
Khyber PakhtunkhwaShangla296,722NA-31
Khyber PakhtunkhwaSwabi714,454NA-12, NA-13
Khyber PakhtunkhwaSwat981,823NA-29, NA-30
Khyber PakhtunkhwaTank150,585NA-25
Khyber PakhtunkhwaTor Ghar64,867NA-21
Khyber PakhtunkhwaUpper Dir331,004NA-33
KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWATOTAL12,266,157NA-1 to NA-35
PunjabAttock1,022,180NA-57, NA-58, NA-59
PunjabBahawalnagar1,264,077NA-188, NA-189, NA-190, NA-191
PunjabBahawalpur1,522,061NA-183, NA-184, NA-185, NA-186, NA-187
PunjabBhakkar711,837NA-73, NA-74
PunjabChakwal929,747NA-60, NA-61
PunjabChiniot602,290NA-86, NA-87, NA-88
PunjabDera Ghazi Khan1,052,720NA-171, NA-172, NA-173
PunjabFaisalabad3,622,748NA-75, NA-76, NA-77, NA-78, NA-79,
NA-80, NA-81, NA-82, NA-83, NA-84, NA-85
PunjabGujranwala2,273,141NA-95, NA-96, NA-97, NA-98, NA-99, NA-100, NA-101
PunjabGujrat1,581,402NA-104, NA-105, NA-106, NA-107
PunjabHafizabad543,646NA-102, NA-103
PunjabJhang1,145,415NA-89, NA-90, NA-91
PunjabJhelum783,571NA-62, NA-63
PunjabKasur1,463,575NA-138, NA-139, NA-140, NA-141, NA-142
PunjabKhanewal1,301,926NA-156, NA-157, NA-158, NA-159
PunjabKhushab680,471NA-69, NA-70
PunjabLahore4,410,095NA-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
PunjabLayyah736,509NA-181, NA-182
PunjabLodhran727,177NA-154, NA-155
PunjabMandi Bahauddin815,154NA-108, NA-109
PunjabMianwali757,191NA-71, NA-72
PunjabMultan2,110,177NA-148, NA-149, NA-150, NA-151, NA-152, NA-153
PunjabMuzaffargarh1,681,436NA-176, NA-177, NA-178, NA-179, NA-180
PunjabNankana Sahib623,625NA-135, NA-136, NA-137
PunjabNarowal792,379NA-115, NA-116, NA-117
PunjabOkara1,396,811NA-143, NA-144, NA-145, NA-146, NA-147
PunjabPakpattan823,478NA-164, NA-165, NA-166
PunjabRahim Yar Khan1,904,615NA-192, NA-193, NA-194, NA-195, NA-196, NA-197
PunjabRajanpur724,286NA-174, NA-175
PunjabRawalpindi2,645,608NA-50, NA-51, NA-52, NA-53, NA-54, NA-55, NA-56
PunjabSahiwal1,190,424NA-160, NA-161, NA-162, NA-163
PunjabSargodha1,861,804NA-64, NA-65, NA-66, NA-67, NA-68
PunjabSheikhupura1,341,341NA-131, NA-132, NA-133, NA-134
PunjabSialkot1,841,347NA-110, NA-111, NA-112, NA-113, NA-114
PunjabToba Tek Singh1,089,508NA-92, NA-93, NA-94
PunjabVehari1,285,562NA-167, NA-168, NA-169, NA-170
PUNJABTOTAL49,259,334 NA-50 to NA-197
SindhBadin639,314NA-224, NA-225
SindhDadu609,609NA-231, NA-232, NA-233
SindhGhotki568,065NA-200, NA-201
SindhHyderabad923,140NA-218, NA-219, NA-220, NA-221
SindhJacobabad394,557NA-208, NA-209, NA-210
SindhJamshoro369,424NA-231
SindhKambar-Shahdadkot508,062NA-206
SindhKarachi Central1,632,487NA-244, NA-245, NA-246, NA-247
SindhKarachi East2,093,898NA-253, NA-254, NA-255, NA-256
SindhKarachi South1,131,376NA-248, NA-249, NA-250, NA-251, NA-252
SindhKarachi West1,493,055NA-239, NA-240, NA-241, NA-242, NA-243
SindhKarachi Malir820,421NA-257, NA-258
SindhKashmore353,616NA-210
SindhKhairpur838,502NA-215, NA-216, NA-217
SindhLarkana585,519NA-204, NA-205, NA-207
SindhMatiari300,486NA-223
SindhMirpur Khas585,262NA-226, NA-227
SindhNaushahro Feroze600,090NA-211, NA-212
SindhSanghar793,397NA-234, NA-235, NA-236
SindhShaheed Benazirabad668,193NA-213, NA-214
SindhShikarpur488,878NA-202, NA-203
SindhSukkur527,635NA-198, NA-199
SindhTando Allahyar286,956NA-223
SindhTando Muhammad Khan230,554NA-222
SindhTharparkar471,831NA-229, NA-230
SindhThatta663,543NA-237, NA-238
SindhUmerkot385,505NA-228
SINDHTOTAL18,963,375NA-198 to NA-258
PAKISTANTOTAL0

Campaign

With the announcement of the care-taker government, campaigning from parties—including the PPP, PML and PTI—started as early as 27 March, six weeks ahead of the 11 May election date. Observers noted that different parties stressed on different interest groups – PTI on the disaffected youth, PML-N on the centre-right constituency, PPP on liberal classes and rural Sindhis, and MQM on Karachi-based muhajirs. Power shortages were another issue in the election campaign.

Pakistan Peoples Party

Founded in 1968, the Pakistan Peoples Party is a centre-left and left oriented party, with a mainstream agenda of promoting socialist economics and social justice. The PPP announced that Zardari would be its candidate for the next Prime Minister, though Bilawal Zardari was still too young to become Prime Minister. Article 62 of the Constitution clearly states that the Prime Minister must be a person who is "not less than twenty-five years of age and is enrolled as a voter in any electoral roll for election to the seat". Zardari was not 25 until September 2013. On 5 May 2013, it was revealed that 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 would not return until after the elections are over.
The PPP's campaign was led by Amin Fahim, accompanied by notable leftist activists such as Taj Haider, Aitzaz Ahsan, Raza Rabbani, and Yousaf Gillani. The PPP ran two different political programmes during the election campaign: "Massawat" and "People's Employment Programme" for the youth voters, and also its vintage "Roti Kapda Aur Makaan slogan. The PPP highlighted its implementation of the nationalization and welfare programs that were launched in 2008. In addition, the PPP greatly supported awareness of industrial and labor rights, importance of higher education in the country, promotion of social economics, a foreign policy of building relations with Russia and Eastern Europe, counterterrorism legislation, efforts to reduce gas shortages in the country. Generally, the PPP's main focused was on gathering its support from Sindh. In a critical editorial 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.
Soon after the PM's last address on 16 March 2013, TV carried live broadcasts from the streets of Lahore and Karachi, where the public mood was one of anger over corruption, the bad economy, and faulty public services. The reaction of political analysts was mixed, with many holding massive corruption and nepotism as the reasons for the government's perceived failures. Even in his televised address, while trumpeting the occasion, PM Raja P Ashraf quietly conceded that his government had also been a source of disappointment for many. Public resentment had been fed by an endless list of problems: enduring power shortages ; the failure to curb terrorist attacks, protect religious minorities and formulate a coherent anti-terrorism strategy; slow and weak response to the floods; sluggish economic growth, a bloated public sector, cresting inflation; and tales of legendary corruption, carving out private fortunes from a treasury to which they scandalously paid little in tax. Many Pakistanis, particularly among the urban middle classes, were looking to the next elections with relief.
In Karachi and other parts of the country, the PPP also maintained a New Left alliance with the ANP, MQM, and Communist Party against the conservative parties in Sindh.

Pakistan Muslim League Noon

The Pakistan Muslim League, a centre-right conservative party, began its campaign on terminating the energy conservation crises, and also issues involving 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 liberalisation, improvement of the public transportation in all over the country, and then the decision of authorising 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." Furthermore, the PML indicated to bring a balance on civil-military relations with the military, through opening a source of political channel to resolve issues.
The PML ran a political programme which was termed as "Ilmi aur Maashi Dhamaka" 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's efforts to gain majority in the elections. After delivering a victory speech in 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 was generally supported by PML against the PPP in Sindh and BNP in Balochistan, also against the PPP. Terming it as "EEE programme" for Education, Energy, Economy, the PML popularise its slogan "Stronger Economy–Strong Pakistan", which was released in 2012.
Addressing to the national via news channels representatives, the PML 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

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is a centrist, welfarist, and nationalist political party a mainstream political programme of supporting the "Third Way" and "welfarism".
In the midst of election campaign, the PTI's chairman, Imran Khan, called for 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 defeated 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 targeted the left-wing policies of PPP and the corruption that took place in :Category:Government-owned companies of Pakistan|state-owned enterprises after underwent through the nationalisation 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 Shia minority 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 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 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 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 extremist terrorist organisation, the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, claimed the responsibility for two bombings at the offices of independent candidates on 28 April. 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 High Peace Council and was organising a meeting of Afghan and Pakistani religious scholars to oppose militancy. All political parties condemned the attack. 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 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

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-US 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

Various polls were conducted by different organisations, 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. As the highest nummain opposition party, 25% would support the Pakistan Muslim League, led by former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Another 20% supported the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf 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 PPP and the PTI respectively. The February 2013 political forecast is based on a nationwide poll of approximately 9,660 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.
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

The survey's findings indicate that the PTI's support is derived from all age groups – 22.9 per cent of those between 18 and 35 years, 18.6 per cent of those between 36 and 50 years, 18.4 per cent of those between 51 and 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 and 50 years indicate a preference for the PPP. Similarly, 46.2 per cent of those aged over 70 expressed a preference for the PML. Compared with respondents' voting histories, the PML'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 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, 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 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. 47% of Balochis said that they would vote for the Balochistan National Party.

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, whose level of support remained similar across all income levels. Those earning in excess of 250,000 rupees each month expressed the maximum intention to vote for either the Muttahida Qaumi Movement 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 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 16 to 21 December and met with election authorities, government officials, party leaders, media and citizen monitoring groups. Joe Clark commended the co-operation 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 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 authorise a European Union Election Observation Mission 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 US 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 US, 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 11 May 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, 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 announcing that the PML had emerged as the largest party, winning four times as many seats as its nearest competitor, the PPP. Though, it fell short for a supermajority in the Parliament. The PML-N ranks were boosted into an overall majority by 19 independent winning candidates who switched allegiance to the PML-N. The PPP emerged as the second largest party, with 45 seats, and the PTI, with 33 seats, emerged as third largest party.

National Assembly

Following the elections, 19 independents joined PML.

Provincial Assemblies

By-elections

Starting from 22 August 2013, several rounds of bye-elections were held by Election Commission to fill vacant seats in all constituent assemblies. As of February 2018, bye-elections have been held for 36 National Assembly seats, 29 Punjab Assembly seats, 19 Sindh Assembly seats, 13 Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Assembly seats, and 6 Balochistan Assembly seats. The consolidated results are as follows:
PartyPunjabSindhBalochistanKhyber PakhtunkhwaNational Assembly
Pakistan Muslim League 2302217
Pakistan Peoples Party213015
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf50057
Muttahida Qaumi Movement06002
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam00111
Awami National Party00011
Pakhtun-khwa Milli Awami Party00001
Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan00010
Independents00322
Total301961336

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, Nawaz Sharif. Speaking to his supporters and media representatives, Nawaz Sharif who was standing with his daughter, Maryam Nawaz and wife Kulsoom Nawaz, said:
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 Nawaz Sharif but also demanded recounting in numerous constituencies.
MQM leader Altaf Hussain spoke to PML. He also called then the 'Punjabis representative party.' He went on to say that the "Muslim League 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.
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'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 13 May 2013. The victory by PML 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 12 March, ~20,272.28 Marks, taking its rally this year to 20.0%. The MCB Ltd. gained ~4.9% to ₨. 261.60 million, poised for the highest close since May 2008. The Pakistan State Oil jumped 5.0% to ₨. 221.86 million; the ABL Assets also increased its profit variation to ~$203.0 million.

International

;Supranational bodies
;States

Incidents of malpractice and rigging

"I am fully justified on the basis of documentary evidence to set aside the election of the returned candidate, which does not reflect the true will of the people," Malik states in the report. "I therefore discard the available record as well as the election record, which has been misappropriated or stolen. I declare the election of the returned candidates from PP-107, Hafizabad-III as a whole to be void."
In PP-107, Hafizabad-III, 21,298 fake and bogus votes were counted as valid votes towards the vote account of the candidates. The number of used counterfoils found in election bags by the commission was 54,242, while the total number of polled votes in a statement by the Returning Officer was recorded as 72,895.

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, a leader of MQM, was responsible for inciting violence and was responsible for the murder. Few days later, British Police raided Altaf Hussain's house in London.

Government formation

The PML's key strategist, Sartaj Aziz, announced in news media the next day that the independents candidates were in negotiation process with the PML to join the party 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, 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.