EXPLAINER: How the President of Pakistan is elected

The election for the 13th president of Pakistan is just a day away with split opposition giving a sniff of success to the newly-elected ruling government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), but until held, the contest results can’t be predicted with certainty.

Here we look at the mechanism for the election for the president of the country and representation given to two national parliament chambers – National Assembly and Senate –and the four provincial assemblies for voting.

The president of Pakistan is elected in a secret ballot by the provincial and national assemblies. There are total 706 assembly members who will elect the president.

The major parties have fielded their candidates in the race for election of the Head of the State. The ruling PTI has nominated its stalwart Arif Alvi, PPP has named party’s veteran leader Aitzaz Ahsan while Jamiat-e-Ulema Islam (JUI-F) has fielded its own party chief Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman as a joint candidate of all opposition parties except the PPP.

Composition of electoral college

All provincial assemblies are allotted equal 65 votes in the Electoral College. This mean that the each member of the Punjab Assembly has 65/370 = 0.176 vote, each member of the Sindh Assembly has 65/168 = 0.387 vote, each member of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly has 65/124 = 0.524 vote and each member of the Balochistan Assembly has 65/65 = 1 vote.

As per the National Assembly stats, the composition of major political bodies in National assembly is as follows: PTI’s total National assembly seats are 151, PML-N has 81 while PPP has 54 seats. Likewise the MMA has 15 seats, MQM 7, Balochistan Awami Party 5, Balochistan National Party 4, GDA 3, PML 3, and independent candidates’ seats are 4.

The political composition of major political parties in the Senate includes PML-N’s 33 seats, PPP has 20 whereas PTI has 12. Previously the PTI had no representation in the Senate. The party with a few number of seats includes the MQM with 5 seats, JUI-F 4 seats, PKMAP has 3 seats, JI has 2 seats, ANP, PML-F and BNP one seat each.

According to article 41(3) Chief Election Commissioner has to conduct elections to the office of the President in a special session of Parliament and all the provincial assemblies in accordance with the provisions of Second Schedule to the Constitution. The President is elected for a term of 5 years.

The President is a ceremonial post, head of state, and merely a figurehead with the executive powers granted to Prime Minister, by the Constitution. The Constitution states that a presidential candidate must be a Muslim men or women, not less than 45 years of age, and a Member of the National Assembly can contest the Presidential election.

The constitution further states that election to the office of President will not be held earlier than sixty days and not later than thirty days before the expiration of the term of the President in office.