Independents lead Balochistan LG elections

QUETTA: Independent candidates are leading in the local government (LG) elections in 32 districts of Balochistan, ARY News reported on Sunday.

According to details, the polling time concluded at 5:00 pm today for the Balochistan LG polls held in 32 out of 34 districts. As per the unofficial results, independent candidates have won 148 seats followed by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) securing 98 seats.

Meanwhile, the ruling Balochistan National Party (BNP) has secured third place by winning 88 seats, according to unofficial results. Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) has won 68 seats while Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party secured fifth place by winning 32 seats.

On the other hand, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has thanked the Balochistan government for holding local body elections.

In a statement, the Chief Election Commissioner said appreciated the performance of law enforcement agencies in holding the LG polls, saying that successful polls in Balochistan further strengthened democracy.

3,552,398 voters were registered for LG polls, whereas, 5,226 polling stations including 576 for men and 562 for women were established for the Balochistan LG polls.

1974 polling statements are declared sensitive and 2034 are highly sensitive. The voting process was monitored by the special secretary from the EC Balochistan office.

Tight security measures have been taken to avoid any kind of untoward incident during the elections across the province.