PML-N, PTI, MQM prevail in strongholds
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ISLAMABAD: The local government elections, held in 42 of the country’s 43 cantonment areas, appeared to be a contest between the PML-N and the PTI, with the former winning 50 and the latter 28 wards, according to unofficial and incomplete results seen by Dawn on Saturday night.
The PML-N and PTI maintained their supremacy in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa respectively, whereas the MQM emerged as the most successful party in Sindh.
Unofficial results show that independent candidates, backed by alliances of various political parties, secured more than 50 seats in the 42 cantonments that were divided into 199 wards for the elections that were held in the country after a gap of 17 years.
Read: Local govt polls conclude in cantonments, PML-N in the lead
Local govt polls held in 42 out of 43 cantonment areas
The election in Balochistan’s Ormara cantonment could not take place because of a dispute over demarcation of land between the district administration and the cantonment authorities.
Punjab
The PML-N proved its supremacy in Punjab by winning the highest number of wards, while the PTI could manage victory in only 15 wards. Independents won in 26 wards in Punjab.
Read: PML-N regains ground in cantt areas
The PML-N swept the two cantonment boards of Rawalpindi by winning 19 out of 20 wards. Of the 20 wards in Lahore, the PML-N won 10, whereas the PTI remained successful in six. In the remaining four wards, the PML-N was leading until the filing of this report.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
In KP, the PTI emerged victorious in 10 wards, followed by the Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) with three wards and the Awami National Party (ANP) in two wards. Pakistan Peoples Party and PML-N could win only one ward each.
As many as 15 wards were won by independent candidates in KP.
Also read: Tehreek-i-Insaf major winning party in KP cantt elections
PTI candidates won from three wards in Abbottabad, two wards in Peshawar and one each in the cantonments of Buner, Kohat, Nowshera, Risalpur and D.I. Khan.
PPP remained successful in only one of the five wards of Peshawar cantonment, whereas PML-N gained its only seat from Abbottabad cantonment.
The JI’s candidates remained successful in three wards — one each in Peshawar, Nowshera and Risalpur cantonments.
The two wards won by the ANP are in Mardan and Nowshera cantonments.
Sindh
The urban Sindh-based MQM, which recently recorded a landslide victory in the by-election on a National Assembly seat, NA-246 from Karachi, emerged as the most successful party by winning 22 wards out of 44 in eight cantonment boards.
The MQM won 16 wards out of 32 in Karachi cantonments and six out of 10 in Hyderabad cantonment area.
Read: Muttahida makes gains in CBH elections
PPP, which is the ruling party in Sindh, managed to win three wards each in Karachi and Hyderabad.
The PTI also succeeded in three Karachi wards whereas the JI and PML-N won two wards each. Seven independents won the elections in Karachi, Hyderabad and Pano Aqil cantonments.
Balochistan
Out of nine wards contested in three cantonments of Balochistan, eight were won by independents and one by PML-N. PML-N secured the seat in the Quetta Cantonment Board.
Also read: Independents win most seats in Balochistan cantt board polls
Two independent candidates had already been declared as winner unopposed in Zhob cantonment.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had set up 1,225 polling stations to conduct the elections, which largely remained peaceful.
According to the ECP data, 1,151 candidates — 541 affiliated with political parties and 610 independents — took part in the elections in which 18 parties had fielded their candidates.
The PTI had fielded 137 candidates — 93 in Punjab, 22 in KP, 18 in Sindh and four in Balochistan. PML-N had 128 candidates — 99 in Punjab, 13 in KP, 12 in Sindh and four in Balochistan.
PPP had fielded 89 candidates — 58 in Punjab, 22 in Sindh, eight in KP and one in Balochistan. The number of candidates fielded by JI was 74 — 41 in Punjab, 28 in Sindh and seven in KP. The MQM had fielded 27 candidates, all in Sindh. The ANP contested on 13 seats in KP and the Awami Muslim League on seven seats in Punjab.
Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2015
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