AJK Elections 2026: Polling ends in first phase, vote counting underway

ISLAMABAD, July 27: Polling for the first phase of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Elections 2026 has ended, with the counting of votes now underway across Mirpur Division, ARY News reported.

According to reports, polling continued until 6:00pm on the directives of the Chief Election Commissioner of AJK in all 13 constituencies of Mirpur Division. The polling time was extended by one hour due to an unusually high voter turnout. Voting was originally scheduled to end at 5:00pm.

A close contest is expected between the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP), and Jamaat-e-Islami in several constituencies of Mirpur, Bhimber and Kotli.

A total of 126 candidates, including nominees of various political parties and independent contenders, are contesting the elections in six constituencies. There are 1,401,439 registered voters across the district.

For the polling process, 2,454 polling stations were established across Mirpur Division, including 597 in Mirpur, 1,107 in Kotli and 608 in Bhimber.

Election authorities declared a large number of polling stations as sensitive or highly sensitive. In LA-8 Raj Mahal-I, 66 polling stations were categorised as highly sensitive, 44 as sensitive and 43 as normal. In LA-9 Kotli-II, 113 polling stations were declared highly sensitive and 63 sensitive, with none falling in the normal category.

Similarly, LA-11 Sehnsa Kotli-IV has 77 highly sensitive and 91 sensitive polling stations, while all 113 polling stations in LA-12 Charhoi Kotli-V were declared highly sensitive. In LA-13 Kotli-VI, 91 polling stations were categorised as highly sensitive, 51 as sensitive and 51 as normal. Additional security personnel were deployed at sensitive and highly sensitive polling stations to ensure peaceful polling.

A day before polling, the Election Commission suspended and arrested two presiding officers in Kotli after they allegedly failed to report to their assigned polling stations and instead went to a private residence. New presiding officers were appointed in their place.

Also Read: AJK Elections 2026: PPP urges ECP to order re-polling at Kotli’s LA-8 polling stations