General elections were held in
Pakistan
on 10 October 2002 to elect the
12th
National Assembly
and four
Provincial Assemblies
. The elections were held under the military government of
Pervez Musharraf
.
[1]
The two mainstream parties,
Pakistan Peoples Party
(PPP) and
Pakistan Muslim League (N)
(PML-N) had several restrictions imposed on them and their leaders
Benazir Bhutto
and
Nawaz Sharif
were in exile. In order to address the restrictions, PPP created the
Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians
(PPPP) under the leadership of
Ameen Faheem
, to contest the elections on its behalf. The PML-N meanwhile, suffering from the party's division into two factions: one that remained loyal to Sharif and were contesting the elections under the leadership of
Javed Hashmi
, and the other which had broken away to form the pro-Musharraf
Pakistan Muslim League (Q)
(PML-Q) under the leadership of
Mian Muhammad Azhar
. The emergence of the PML-Q marked the beginning of
multi-party politics
in the country, bringing an end to the decade-long
two-party system
between the PPP and PML-N.
The newly formed
PML-Q
- referred to as King's party due to President Musharraf's support - won the highest number of seats in the National Assembly. Despite the absence of
Benazir Bhutto
,
PPPP
came at a close second, and actually dominated in terms of popular vote. In opposition to the liberal regime of Musharraf,
Islamist
parties had organised themselves into the right-wing alliance
Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal
(MMA) prior to elections. The MMA ended up becoming the third largest party in National Assembly.
PML-N
suffering from
Nawaz Sharif
's absence and party split, finished fourth. At the provincial level, PPPP emerged as the largest party in
Sindh
, PML-Q was triumphant in
Punjab
, whereas MMA won the most seats in
NWFP
and
Balochistan
. With help of other pro-Musharraf parties such as
MQM
and
National Alliance
, PML-Q formed a government not only in the Centre but also in all provinces besides NWFP. Since
Mian Muhammad Azhar
had failed to win a seat himself, PML-Q and its allies agreed on the appointment of
Zafarullah Jamali
as the next
Prime Minister
Background
[
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]
Following the
1999 Pakistani coup d'etat
,
Nawaz Sharif
was removed as
Prime Minister of Pakistan
and
Pervez Musharraf
assumed control of the executive branch of the
Government of Pakistan
. In 2000, the Supreme Court ruled that the coup was legal although had to be legitimised by an election. A
referendum
was held earlier in 2002 to bring legitimacy to Musharraf's presidency, despite being boycotted by the opposition.
Parties and candidates
[
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]
More than 70 parties contested the elections. The main parties were the
Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians
(PPPP),
Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz)
,
Muttahida Quami Movement
(MQM),
Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid-e-Azam)
, which was also called the "King's Party" for its unconditional support of the government, and the
Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal
(MMA), an alliance of six religious political parties.
Other known parties contesting at the national level included the six-party
National Alliance
led by
former President
Farooq Leghari
,
Imran Khan
's
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf
and
Tahir-ul-Qadri
's
Pakistan Awami Tehreek
.
[1]
Conduct
[
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]
To control the political landscape, the Musharraf-led government introduced the
Political Parties Order, 2002
, imposing criteria that effectively disqualified the leadership of the PPP and PML-N from participating in the elections.
[2]
The administrative machinery, from the police to vote counters, was reportedly aligned with state interests, suggesting widespread rigging.
[2]
Journalist Zarrar Khuhro described the elections as heavily manipulated, with
disenfranchisement
disguised as
electoral reform
.
[2]
One controversial reform was the requirement for candidates to hold
graduate degrees
, a stipulation that excluded many potential candidates due to the educational standards in Pakistan.
[2]
However, an exception was made for
religious scholars
, equating
madrassah
certificates with graduate degrees, thereby favoring the pro-Musharraf
Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal
alliance and introducing a bias in candidate eligibility.
[2]
These elections also saw the reduction in the minimum eligible age to be a voter, from 21 years to 18 years.
[3]
Results
[
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]
In the National Assembly elections, the PPPP received the most votes but the PML-Q won the most seats, winning 126 to the PPPP's 81. At the provincial level, the MMA emerged as the largest party in
Balochistan
and
North-West Frontier Province
. The PML-N lost its stronghold of
Punjab
to the PML-Q, while in
Sindh
there was a hung parliament, with the PPP winning more seats than the
National Alliance
. Voter turnout was 41.8%.
Although the founder of the PML-Q
Mian Muhammad Azhar
was considered the most likely candidate to become
Prime Minister
, he failed to win a seat in the National Assembly. Instead a senior party leader
Zafarullah Khan Jamali
was tasked with leading the new government. Meanwhile, the MMA leader
Fazal-ur-Rehman
became the
Leader of the Opposition
.
National Assembly
[
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]
Party
| Votes
| %
| Seats
|
---|
Constituency
| Women
| Minority
| Total
|
---|
| Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians
| 7,616,033
| 26.05
| 63
| 14
| 2
| 79
|
| Pakistan Muslim League (Q)
| 7,500,797
| 25.66
| 78
| 23
| 4
| 105
|
| Pakistan Muslim League (N)
| 3,409,805
| 11.66
| 15
| 3
| 1
| 19
|
| Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal
| 3,335,643
| 11.41
| 45
| 12
| 2
| 59
|
| National Alliance
| 1,395,398
| 4.77
| 13
| 3
| 0
| 16
|
| Muttahida Qaumi Movement
| 932,166
| 3.19
| 13
| 3
| 1
| 17
|
| Pakistan Muslim League (F)
| 328,923
| 1.13
| 4
| 1
| 0
| 5
|
| Awami National Party
| 299,067
| 1.02
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Muslim League (J)
| 283,755
| 0.97
| 3
| 1
| 0
| 4
|
| Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf
| 209,514
| 0.72
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 1
|
| Pakistan Awami Tehreek
| 202,845
| 0.69
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 1
|
| Balochistan National Movement
| 107,355
| 0.37
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Peoples Party (Sherpao)
| 98,476
| 0.34
| 2
| 0
| 0
| 2
|
| Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party
| 96,252
| 0.33
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 1
|
| Jamhoori Wattan Party
| 96,240
| 0.33
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 1
|
| Pakistan Democratic Party
| 83,976
| 0.29
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Muslim League (Z)
| 78,798
| 0.27
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 1
|
| Sunni Tehreek
| 72,583
| 0.25
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Balochistan National Party
| 57,865
| 0.20
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 1
|
| Qaumi Movement Pakistan
| 54,007
| 0.18
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 1
|
| Tehreek-e-Istiqlal
| 43,400
| 0.15
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Shia Political Party
| 42,855
| 0.15
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 1
|
| Saleem Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf
| 32,958
| 0.11
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Peoples Party (Shaheed Bhutto)
| 31,208
| 0.11
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pak Muslim Alliance
| 22,637
| 0.08
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Balochistan National Democratic Party
| 15,291
| 0.05
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Kazmi Nazim-e-Mistafa
| 11,728
| 0.04
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Jamote Qaumi Movement
| 6,240
| 0.02
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Qaumi Jamhoori Party
| 6,224
| 0.02
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Nizam-e-Mustafa Party
| 5,154
| 0.02
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Kakar Jamhoori Party Pakistan
| 4,074
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Mohib-e-Wattan Nowjawan Inqilabion Ki Anjuman (Mnaka)
| 3,806
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Hazara Qaumi Mahaz
| 3,480
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pak Wattan Party
| 3,097
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Awami Party
| 2,993
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Awami Qiadat Party
| 2,987
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| National People Party Worker Group
| 2,515
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Freedom Party
| 1,861
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Balochistan National Congress
| 1,832
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Ittehad Milli Hazara
| 1,552
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Labour Party Pakistan
| 1,464
| 0.01
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Mazdoor Kissan Party
| 1,437
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Tameer-e-Pakistan Party
| 909
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Tehreek Hussainia Pakistan
| 616
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan
(Nifaz-e-Shariat)
| 581
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Workers Party
| 520
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Qaumi Inqilab Party
| 496
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Gharib Party
| 422
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Saraiki Sooba Movement Pakistan
| 348
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Shan-e-Pakistan Party
| 276
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Mohajir Ittehad Tehreek
| 262
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Seriaki Party
| 225
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Shah Moosvi Awami Qiadat Party
| 202
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Sindh Urban-rurel Alliance
| 165
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Labour Party Pakistan (Krandi)
| 164
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Istiqlil Party
| 151
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Ittehad Tehreek
| 145
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Social Democratic Party
| 105
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Pakistan Awami Tehreek-e-Inqilab
| 75
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Zaheer Markazi Jamat-al-hadais
| 43
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Qaumi Tahaffaz Party
| 22
| 0.00
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
|
| Independents
| 2,722,669
| 9.31
| 28
| 0
| 0
| 28
|
Total
| 29,236,687
| 100.00
| 272
| 60
| 10
| 342
|
|
Valid votes
| 29,236,687
| 97.42
| |
---|
Invalid/blank votes
| 775,720
| 2.58
| |
---|
Total votes
| 30,012,407
| 100.00
| |
---|
Registered voters/turnout
| 71,866,278
| 41.76
| |
---|
Source:
CLEA
,
National Assembly
|
Provincial Assemblies
[
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Party
| Votes
| %
| Seats
|
---|
General
|
---|
| Pakistan Muslim League (Q)
| 6,144,813
| 33.33
| 129
|
| Pakistan Peoples Party
| 4,145,106
| 22.48
| 63
|
| Pakistan Muslim League (N)
| 3,028,856
| 16.43
| 38
|
| Others
| 2,684,000
| 14.56
| 29
|
| Independents
| 2,435,199
| 13.21
| 38
|
Total
| 18,437,974
| 100.00
| 297
|
|
Source:
Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN)
|
Election for Prime Minister
[
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]
The election for Prime Minister took place on 21 November 2002.
References
[
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]