PTI emerges as winner in cantonment board elections

The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) emerged as the leading party in the cantonment board elections held across the country on Sunday.

According to unofficial preliminary results, the PTI has won 63 seats, while the main opposition party, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), has secured 59 seats. Independent candidates have bagged 52 seats. 

The number of seats won by the other political parties is as following: PPP 17, Jamaat-e-Islami seven and Awami National Party two.

Of the parties which are currently in alliance with the PTI, MQM won 10 seats and the Balochistan Awami Party two.

Earlier, polling for local government elections was held in cantonment boards across Pakistan, with 1,560 candidates contesting against each other in 206 wards.

Polling started at 8am and continued till 5pm without any break.

All leading political parties have fielded their candidates while the main contest is expected among the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).

PTI has fielded over 170 candidates in all four provinces, followed by 140 of the PML-N and 112 of the PPP. 105 candidates of the Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) are in the run in the four provinces.

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and the Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) have fielded 41 and 33 candidates, respectively, in the cantonment boards in Karachi and Hyderabad.

Meanwhile, nationalist and religious parties, including the banned Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), are also contesting in all four provinces.

According to the Election Commission of Pakistan, over 5,000 polling booths have been set up in 1,644 polling stations. A total of 2,197,441 voters, including 1,154,551 men and 1,043,190 women, are registered in all cantonment boards.

No polling is scheduled in Kamra, Cherat, and Murree cantonments. Besides, candidates have already been elected unopposed in several wards of various cantonment boards.

878 candidates are in the field in 112 wards of 19 cantonments in Punjab, 418 in 53 wards of eight cantonments in Sindh, 170 candidates in 33 wards of nine cantonments in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), and 47 candidates in eight wards of three cantonments in Balochistan.