All arrangements for the upcoming nationwide Senate elections in Pakistan, scheduled for April 2, have been completed by the Election Commission of Pakistan ECP.
Voting for the open upper house seats will take place in the National Assembly and all four provincial legislatures from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Voting papers were printed in four distinct colors as part of the electoral authority’s preparations for the Senate polls. For general seats, white paper will be used; for technocrat seats, green; for women’s seats, pink; and for minority seats, yellow.
Furthermore, the election materials have been delivered to returning officers. The full list of candidates running for the 48 open Senate seats has already been released by returning officers.
There were 29 general seats up for election, 8 seats reserved for women, 9 seats for technocrats and ulema, and 2 seats for non-Muslims.
Of these open seats, 147 candidates filed their candidacy papers, according to the ECP. Seven of these come from Punjab’s general seats, while 18 of them have been elected without any opposition.
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Similar to this, there has been no opposition to the election of senators for seven general seats, two women’s seats, and two Ulema/technocrat seats in Balochistan.
As per the schedule issued by the ECP, the contest for the remaining 30 seats will be held on Tuesday. In total, 59 candidates are vying for the vacant seats.
One general seat, one technocrat seat, two women’s seats, two technocrat/ulema seats, and one non-Muslim seat from Punjab are up for election in the federal capital.
Elections are also scheduled for seven general seats, two women’s seats, two technocrat/ulema seats, and one non-Muslim seat in Sindh. Elections will also be held in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for seven generals, two women’s and two technocrat seats.
If the speaker of the KP Assembly fails to deliver the oath to the women and minority lawmakers-elect from the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) in the reserved seats, as advised by the electoral board, the elections for the 11 Senate seats in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa may be postponed.
The elections are intended to fill the seats left empty by the retirement of half of the current senators on March 12, according to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). There are elections for 48 seats among the 52 senators who finished their six-year terms and retired.
This is due to the elimination of four seats that resulted from the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province’s merger with the erstwhile federally administered tribal areas (FATA) regions.
As a result, there are now 96 Senate seats instead of the original 100. A comprehensive code of conduct for political parties and candidates was recently released by the ECP in advance of the Senate elections.
The objective of the code is to ensure impartiality, honesty, and equity during the voting process. Political parties and candidates running in the elections must abide by strict standards enforced by the code of conduct.
They are forbidden from participating in corrupt or unlawful acts and have been asked to refrain from stirring up controversy surrounding the electoral monitor. Furthermore, it is strictly prohibited for public office holders to assist in influencing the results of elections.