Islamabad: The Pakistan Electoral Commission (ECP) on Friday finally announced the calendar for Senate elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, establishing July 21 as the voting date.
The very delayed but suspense exercise will see elections in 11 seats: seven generals and two reserved for women, ulema and technocrats.
Experts believe that the result will depend on how the members of PTI supported and JUI-F vote. If the opposition remains united and the members backed by PTI strictly follow the discipline of the party, with the support of Jui-F, the ruling coalition can win only a general seat.
However, the scenario would change dramatically if some members of PTI break the ranks and Jui-F reaches an agreement with the ruling coalition. In that case, the coalition could pack around five seats, potentially winning a two -thirds majority in the upper house of Parliament. Jui-F already has five seats in the Senate.
Currently, the ruling coalition has 54 members in the Senate of 96 members, 10 less than two thirds (64 seats).
On July 21, surveys for 11 kP Senate seats will be carried out, while a separate choice for the stuffing stuff by Senator Sania Nishtar is scheduled for July 31.
According to an ECP statement, Senate elections in KP were delayed due to an incomplete electoral university. The calendar was announced two days after 25 reserved seats, originally assigned to the Sunita Ittehad (sic) Council, are redistributed among the parties, including PML-N, PPP, JUI-F, PTI-P and ANP.
The elections were previously postponed in April 2024, exacerbating political uncertainty in the province. The survey for another seat in the Senate, unemployed after the death of Professor Saxid Mir, will also take place on July 21.
An ECP spokesman said that letters have been sent to the speakers of national and provincial assemblies, requesting the oath of members chosen in reserved seats and notified on July 2, 2025. This is to ensure that they can assume a position and vote in the Senate elections in KP and Punjab.
It can be remembered that the Senate elections in KP were previously postponed on April 2, 2024, due to the speaker’s refusal to administer an oath to newly elected members in reserved seats.
A new notification says: “In the continuation of the previous notification of April 2, 2024, through which the date of the survey for the Senate elections of the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa against seven general seats, two seats of women and two technocrats, including ulma seat Senate survey.
The ECP has also issued a detailed schedule for the seat unemployed by Dr. Saint Nishtar. The public notice will be issued on July 9, the nomination documents can be presented on July 10 and 11, the scrutiny will take place on July 16, and the surveys will take place on July 31. The former PTI legislator had resigned in October last year, but his seat was declared vacant on March 10 of this year.
In addition, a notification has been issued for the choice of the seat that is vacant by the disappearance of Senator PML-N, Professor Sajid Mir. The revised candidate list will be broadcast on July 15, nomination withdrawals are allowed until July 16, and the surveys will be held on July 21 at the Punjab Assembly building.
In addition, an electoral schedule for two vacant seats reserved for KP PML-N women in the National Assembly has been issued. The officer who returns will issue a public notice on July 8; Nomination documents can be presented on July 9 and 10; The scrutiny will take place on July 14; and the final list of candidates will be released on July 24. The list of previous priorities of the PML-N has been exhausted, and a new one must be sent to the counting officer of the priority list before July 10.
Posted in Dawn, July 5, 2025
