In a surprising turn of events, former Prime Minister Imran Khan's party has won the most seats in Pakistan's election, though they do not have a clear majority. Mr. Khan is claiming victory, however, another ex-PM, Nawaz Sharif, is seeking to form a coalition with other parties. This comes after Pakistan's army chief urged the country to move away from divisive and chaotic politics. The final official results have yet to be announced.
Former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has been elected as prime minister of Pakistan for the second time, after securing 201 votes in the National Assembly. He beat out Omar Ayub, who was backed by jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan. The election, which was delayed due to uncertain national elections, was met with protests from the opposition party. The 72-year-old Sharif returned to his role as prime minister after a coalition government was formed between his party, the PML-N, and the PPP.
According to initial trends from the Pakistan general elections, independent candidates supported by Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) are giving a tough challenge to former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) in the key Punjab province. Incidents of violence and terror attacks have been reported during the elections, which has left at least twelve people dead. PTI's candidate, Dr Yasmin Rashid, is currently leading in Lahore's NA-130 constituency, while Shehbaz Sharif is ahead in Lahore's NA-123. The PTI has alleged that the election results are being delayed and their candidates are emerging victorious, but the results reported by news channels are unofficial and may change as the counting progresses.