ISLAMABAD:
Major political parties largely retained their share of votes in national and provincial assemblies during the General Elections 2024 (GE-2024), according to a report by the Free and Fair Elections Network (FAFEN).
In its report, ‘GE-2024 National and Provincial Elections: Polled Votes and Party Shares in Votes and Seats’, FAFEN analyzed the popular vote share of key political parties and their corresponding seats in the national and provincial assemblies.
During GE-2024, PTI, PML-N and PPP collectively secured 68 per cent of the votes for the National Assembly and 62 per cent for the four Provincial Assemblies. In comparison, these parties had received 69 percent and 61 percent of the votes, respectively, in GE-2018, and 65 percent and 58 percent in GE-2013.
The report highlights that the number of votes obtained in the electoral districts of the National Assembly was slightly higher than that of the provincial assemblies.
A partial reason for the difference was the postponement of elections in one national constituency (NA-8 Bajaur in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and three provincial constituencies (PK-22 Bajaur-IV and PK-91 Kohat-II in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and PP- 266 Rahimyar Khan -XII in Punjab). FAFEN analysis reveals that none of the main parties won an outright majority in their respective strongholds, even when they formed governments after the general elections.
In KP, the PTI won 45 percent of the votes in the National Assembly elections, with the remaining 55 percent divided among other parties.
JUI-P received 16 percent, PML-N got 10 percent, the ANP and independents each got seven percent, and other parties collectively accounted for 15 percent.
A tight race developed between PTI and PML-N in ICT and Punjab. In ICT, the PTI won 33 percent of the vote, narrowly beating the PML-N’s 31 percent, while the independents won 20 percent.
The TLP received five percent, the PPPP four percent and other parties collectively accounted for seven percent. In Punjab, the PTI led with 35 percent of the National Assembly votes, narrowly edging out the PML-N, which won 34 percent.
This was followed by the TLP with seven percent, the PPPP with six percent, the independents with 14 percent and other parties with five percent.
In Sindh, the PPP got 46 percent of the national vote, followed by the GDA with 12 percent, the PTI and the independents each got nine percent, the MQM-P got eight percent and other parties more small ones together accounted for 16 percent.
Balochistan exhibited the most fragmented voting pattern, with regional parties and independents winning 35 percent and 16 percent of the national vote, respectively.
