Pakistan - Political Parties

National Assembly
25
10 Oct 18 Feb 26 June 11 May
Party July
2002 2008 2008 * 2013
2018
272+ 272+ 272 +
total contested 272 268
70 70 70
Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf [PTI] Imran KHAN 1 35 118
Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N Nawaz) 19 66 90 167 63
Pakistan's People's Party [PPP] 81 87 127 39 43
Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal [MMA] 60 3 8 ... 10
Pakistan Muslim League (Pir Pagara) 5 4 5 ... 5
Grand Democratic Alliance ... 2
Balochistan National Party 1 1 1 ... 2
Muttahida Qaumi Movement [MQM] 17 19 25 23 2
Awami National Party (ANP) 10 13 1 1
Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid-e-Azam) 118 38 51 3 -
National Alliance 16 ... ...
Pakistan Muslim League (Junejo Group) 3 ... ...
Pakistan People's Party (Sherpao Group) 2 1 1 ... ...
National People's Party (NPP) 2 1 ... ...
Pakistan Muslim League (Zia-ul-Haq) 1 ... ...
Jamhoori Watan Party 1 ... ...
Muhajir Qaumi Movement 1 ... ...
Pakistan Awami Tehreek 1 ... ...
Jamiat Ulema-e Islam-Fazl 14 ...
Independents 14 27 18 ... 14
Vacant 1 2 ... ...
Out of 342 seats, 272 are filled by direct election, 60 seats are designated for women and 10 for
religious minorities.
* By election - reflects affiliation of both elected and reserved seats
Pakistan's political system is broken: its political parties are ineffective, functioning for decades as
instruments of two families, the Bhuttos and the Sharifs, two clans, both corrupt. The Bhutto-Zardari axis
may be considered "left leaning," while the Sharif brothers may be considered "right leaning." The Sharifs
are much closer to Pakistan's military, and to Pakistan's Muslim fundamentalists. Punjabi, the Sharifs
represent Pakistan's major ethnic bloc, and the devout Sunni Sharif has an advantage over the Bhuttos, who
have Shiite ties. Apart from the Mohajir Qaumi Movement (MQM) in Karachi, the class character of all
other political parties is feudal. Pakistan has not dismantled old feudal structures. The Bhutto family alone
owns over 20,000 acres, a scale of land ownership that is common.
Pakistan's established political parties have failed to successfully reform on their own accord. Political
parties are seen as personality driven and disconnected from the electorate, with little public awareness of
party platforms and little faith that the parties can help solve the most pressing problems facing the country.
Pakistan has universal adult suffrage, and those 18 years of age and older are eligible to vote. As of early
2005, there were 72 million registered voters. The minimum age of candidates is 25 years of age for national
and provincial assemblies, 30 for the Senate, and 45 for president. The president sets election dates, and the
Election Commission (EC) conducts national and provincial assembly elections, but the EC's chair, the chief
election commissioner, oversees elections for local governments, the Senate, and the presidency. The EC is
an independent, financially autonomous body, but it has been criticized as having little power to enforce
codes of conduct on political parties and candidates.
Constituencies are demarcated by population, administrative boundaries, and other factors. In 2002 there
were 357 constituencies for the National Assembly and 728 constituencies for provincial assemblies. Sixty
seats in the National Assembly and 128 in the provincial assemblies are reserved for women. In addition, 10
seats in the National Assembly and 23 in the provincial assemblies are reserved for non-Muslims. In April
2002, Musharraf's term as president was extended for five years in a national referendum. Elections were
held for the national and provincial assemblies in October 2002 and for the Senate in February 2003.
However, domestic and international observers have criticized these and earlier elections as flawed.
Political parties have increased in number but declined in political power, particularly in relation to the
military. Since the late 1990s, numerous parties have splintered into factions, dividing electoral support and
leading to the formation of coalitions that often also dissolve into factions. The three parties with the greatest
electoral support since 1988 all have become shadows of their former selves. The Pakistan People's Party
(PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Sharif (PML-N) have splintered into numerous parties, and the
Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) has lost substantial legitimacy as a result of involvement in violence.
Officially, 73 parties contested the 2002 National Assembly elections, but only 3 percent of voters were
registered as members of a political party. As a result of elections in 2002, a coalition led by the Pakistan
Muslim League-Quaid-e-Azam (PML-Q) assumed control of provincial assemblies in Punjab and Sindh and
the National Assembly. This party was closely associated with the government of General Musharraf.
Parties often have no constitutions, membership lists, or documentation of funding sources. Furthermore,
electoral support is rarely nationwide and most often is drawn from particular religious, ethnic, or regional
bases. The military has given financial support to religious parties as a counterweight to secular parties, but
electoral support for religious parties has been well below 10 percent nationwide. Many parties have
separate wings for women and youth, and many are accused of having militias that collect funds and
intimidate opponents.
In the February 18, 2008 elections, 49 parties contested the National Assembly elections. As a result of
attacks on political party gatherings, over 100 party supporters were killed during the campaign. In addition,
over 50 people were reportedly killed in clashes between supporters during this period. Tragically, on 27
December 2007, Benazir Bhutto, leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) was assassinated at a campaign
rally. Although the February 2008 elections were competitive and the results were accepted, there are
enduring problems with the framework and conditions for elections in Pakistan. The 18 February 2008
National and Provincial Assembly Elections saw a pluralistic process in which a broad range of views were
expressed, an election that was competitive and a polling process which achieved increased public
confidence in comparison to previous elections. However, there were serious problems with the framework
and conditions in which the elections were held and a level playing field was not provided during the
campaign, primarily as a result of abuse of state resources and bias in the state media in favor of the former
ruling parties. A number of political parties promoted a boycott of the process, in particular in Balochistan.
As a result, the overall process fell short of a number of international standards for genuine democratic
elections.
The results declared the PPP to have won the most seats of any party, followed by the PML (N). Parties
aligned with President Pervez Musharraf, such as the PML (Q) and MQM, finished well below the PPP and
PML (N), and differences of opinion on a variety of issues stalled the formation of a unity government
between the PPP and PML (N) by May 2008. By-elections for seven National Assembly and 29 Provincial
Assembly seats were held June 26. The election covered seats where the incumbent died (including Benazir
Bhutto) and where a multiple winner in the February general election opted to fill another seat.
Mounting public dissatisfaction with President Musharraf, coupled with the assassination of, Benazir
Bhutto, in late 2007, and Musharraf's resignation in August 2008, led to the election of Asif Ali Zardari in
September 2008. Nawaz Sharif kept Punjab but allowed the PPP to rule from Islamabad.