LAHORE: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) swept all five Senate seats in Punjab while the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) emerged victorious in Sindh securing 10 out of 12 Senate seats.
From the federal’s capital Islamabad, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) candidate Ishaq Dar has been elected Senator on a technocrat senatorial seat with 224 votes while Sunni Ittehad Council’s (SIC) Raja Ansar received 81 votes. The Pakistan People’s Party Rana Mahmoodul Hasan secured 224 votes defeating Farzand Hussain of the SIC, who received 79 votes.
The PML-N clinched all five reserved seats for technocrats, women, and minorities in Punjab. Seven senators on general seats were elected unopposed.
Unofficial results showed that PML-N’s Muhammad Aurangzeb and Musadik Masood Malik secured victory on two reserved seats for technocrats, garnering 128 and 121 votes respectively. On the same seats, Dr. Yasmin Rashid of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) managed only 106 votes.
Similarly, PML-N’s Anusha Rehman and Bushra Anjum Butt emerged victorious on two reserved women’s seats, obtaining 125 and 123 votes respectively. Meanwhile, SIC’s candidate Sanam Javed Khan secured only 102 votes.
Additionally, PML-N’s Khalil Tahir Sindhu secured victory on one reserved seat for minorities with 253 votes, while SIC’s Asif Ashiq obtained 99 votes.
Polling occurred at the Punjab Assembly chambers from 9 am to 4 pm for two seats each reserved for women and technocrats, and one for minorities. Provincial Election Commissioner Punjab Aijaz Anwar Chohan served as the returning officer for the Senate Election.
It’s noteworthy that out of the 12 Senate seats from Punjab, four PML-N candidates, two supported by the PTI-backed Sunni Ittehad Council, and one independent candidate – Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi – were elected unopposed on the seven general seats of the Senate from Punjab.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) secured 10 out of 12 seats in the Senate elections from Sindh, with Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan and independent candidate Faisal Vawda winning one seat each.
According to the results announced by the returning officers, PPP secured five general, two technocrats, one minority, and two women seats. Winners included Ashraf Ali Jatoi, Dost Ali Jaisar, Kazim Ali Shah, Masroor Hassan, and Nadeem Bhutto for general seats, Sarmad Ali and Zameer Ghamro for technocrat seats, Poonjo Bheel for the minority seat, and Rubina Qaimkhani and Quratul Ain Marri for women’s seats.
