Today's Edition
Pakistan will hold elections in the last week of January, the election commission announced today.
"The final list of constituencies will be published on November 30. After that, the elections will be held in the last week of January 2024, after a 54-day election program," it said in a statement. Currently, a caretaker government led by acting Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar is ruling the South Asian country following the dissolution of the lower house, known as the National Assembly, on August 9.
The president Arif Alvi dissolved the National Assembly on the advice of outgoing Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, clearing the way for a national vote within 90 days, as required by the Constitution. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced that it has scheduled a meeting with political parties in October to discuss the code of conduct for elections.
In its statement, the ECP said the session was being held according to Section 233 of the Elections Act 2017. The meeting is scheduled to be held on October 4 at the ECP Secretariat in Islamabad.
The meeting scheduled for October 4 follows separate meetings between the ECP and political parties on the electoral roadmap amid disagreements between political parties regarding the timeframe for polls. The ECP said, "In this regard, a copy of the draft Code of Conduct has also been sent to the leaders of political parties so that they can provide their feedback during the consultation".
Earlier, in August, Pakistani President invited Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja for a meeting to "fix an appropriate date" for general elections.
