Ruling PML-N sweeps by-elections in Pakistan amid low turnout

Islamabad: The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) swept the by-elections held on Sunday, winning 12 out of 13 seats, according to unofficial results.

By-elections were conducted for six seats of the National Assembly (NA) and seven of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab. All NA seats were in Punjab except one in Haripur area of Khyber- Pakhtunkhwa province.

The six NA constituencies where polling was conducted included NA-18 (Haripur), NA-96 and NA-104 (Faisalabad), NA-129 (Lahore), NA-143 (Sahiwal) and NA-185 (Dera Ghazi Khan).

The seven Punjab Assembly constituencies up for grabs included PP-73 (Sargodha), PP-87 (Mianwali), PP-98, PP-115, PP-116 (Faisalabad), PP-203 (Sahiwal), and PP-269 (Muzaffargarh).

The PML-N had won all seats, except for one in Muzzafargarh, which was secured by the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), according to the unofficial results, reported Dunya News TV.

According to the unofficial results for the Punjab Assembly constituency, PP-269 Muzaffargarh, PPP’s Mian Alamdar Abbas Qureshi was declared victorious by securing 55,868 votes, while his opponent, independent candidate Muhammad Iqbal Khan Pitafi, came in second place.

The by-elections were held after the disqualification of several PTI lawmakers following their conviction in May 9 violence cases.  The main opposition PTI, however, stayed away from the electoral exercise, save for two National Assembly constituencies in Lahore and Haripur.  Dunya News reported that the polling was peaceful, but voter turnout was relatively low. PML-N workers celebrated the victory by distributing sweets and exploding fireworks.