A source close to the Sharif family has told us that as the election results go neck to neck PML-N Chief Nawaz Sharif has left the PMLN Model Town headquarters and cancelled his ‘victory speech’.
News report from PMLN headquarters: Mian Nawaz Shareef did not make the scheduled victory speech and has left the PMLN headquarters
— Kamran Shahid (@FrontlineKamran) February 8, 2024
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif cast his vote in NA-128 Lahore.
Nawaz Sharif voted for Imran Khan’s former bestie and Istehkam-e-Pakistan’s (IPP) leader, Aun Chaudhry.
Aun was a member of PTI for a long time and a close associate of Khan. PMLN has supported his candidacy as Nawaz and his family have voted for Aun.
Our Election Handbook is finally here.
It’s been a long journey filled with tears, sweat, and countless sleepless nights (quite literally) as we meticulously researched your candidate.
Do you know what your candidate thinks about women’s rights, transgender rights, climate change, and minority issues? We looked through official government and party websites, news articles, news videos to find information on what your candidate thinks about issues that matter to you. We only had the manpower to do 50 candidates and hope it helps you make the decision on who to vote for in your city. The handbook is added, page by page, below but if you rather download it, here is the link:
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The former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif, while talking to GEO News, said that if Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) gets a simple majority in elections, then PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif will be the next prime minister of Pakistan.
The former prime minister also said that PML-N needs to do more work for women’s empowerment, as the party is lacking in addressing this issue. He also said that the party is geared up to fix the economy when they win the election.
After a hectic election campaign, prominent leaders of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) find themselves in an a quandary, as they gear up for the upcoming general elections.
Despite urging voters to support the party’s ‘sher’ electoral symbol, key figures within the PML-N will be unable to cast their votes for the animal on the National Assembly seat. Instead, they might vote for another animal.
Nawaz Sharif, Shehbaz Sharif and Hamza Shehbaz, all integral figures within the PML-N, are registered to vote in NA-128, where the party has entered into a seat adjustment agreement with the Istehkam-e-Pakistan (IPP) party.
Interestingly, in NA-128, the PML-N has decided not to field a candidate for the National Assembly seat, instead throwing their support behind IPP leader Aun Chaudhry, whose symbol is an eagle.
However, despite this alliance, the three PML-N leaders will still exercise their voting rights for PML-N candidate,Umar Sohail in PP-161.
The PML-N’s election strategy spans across the country, with the party contesting 212 NA constituencies on February 8, while leaving 51 NA seats open for rivals or allies.
Notable among their candidates are Nawaz Sharif, who will be contesting in NA-15 (Mansehra) and NA-130 (Lahore), Maryam Nawaz in NA-119 (Lahore), and Hamza Shehbaz in NA-118 (Lahore). Shehbaz Sharif is set to participate in the elections from NA-123 (Lahore) and NA-132(Kasur).
However, there are several constituencies where the PML-N has chosen not to field candidates, including NA-4 (Swat-III), NA-19 (Swabi-I), and NA-117 (Lahore-I), among others, as part of their strategic alliances and considerations for bolstering their position in the province.
The constituencies where the PML-N has not fielded its candidates are: NA-4 (Swat-III), NA-19 (Swabi-I), NA-20 (Swabi-II), NA-21 (Mardan-I), NA-22 (Mardan-III), NA-44 (Dera Ismail Khan-I), NA-45 (Dera Ismail Khan-II), NA-48 (Islamabad-III), NA-54 (Islamabad-III), NA-64 (Gujrat-III), NA-88 (Khushab-II), NA-92 (Bhakkar-II), NA-117 (Lahore-I), NA-128 (Lahore-XII), NA-143 (Sahiwal-III), NA-149 (Multan-II).
Moreover, the candidates are also not contesting on NA-165, NA-185, NA-190 to NA-204, NA-206 to NA-210, NA-212, NA-214, NA-215, NA-217, NA-218, NA-221, NA-223, NA-224, NA-228, NA-239, NA-245, NA-264 and NA-266.
The former ruling party, in its bid to strengthen its position in the province ahead of the upcoming elections, had entered a seat adjustment agreement with Jahangir Tareen’s IPP.
Google Trends offer an insight into the popularity and curiosity political leaders enjoy among the masses. As the elections are drawing near, we took a peak into the data Google Trends have recorded over the last 30 days.
The highest and ever-increasing line graph is Imran Khan’s. The highest peak was shown on January 30 with Khan hitting the record 100 score whereas his contemporaries, Nawaz stood on 15, Maryam Nawaz at eight, Bilawal-Bhutto Zardari at three, and Hamza Shehbaz being the lowest: less than one.
However, it is important to note that Imran’s progressively increasing arc starts dropping successively in the days after Jan 30.
On the other hand, except for Hamza Shehbaz, the other three is slowly on an upward trend.
Breakdown of regions
PTI founder and jailed leader Imran Khan is most popular all over Pakistan according to Google Trends.
Punjab
In Punjab, the most popular choices for Chief Ministership, Hamza Shehbaz, and Maryam Nawaz contrary to popular perception, are not being searched so much. After Khan winning with more than 69 percent of searches, Nawaz Sharif is at 17 percent while Maryam is at nine percent. It appears that people in Punjab are comparatively more interested in Bilawal than Hamza who has 1 percent searches from all over the province.
However, it is important to note that out of all the provinces, Punjab has shown more interest in PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif. Sindh has shown the most interest after Punjab, which is 11 percent, 10 percent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, nine percent in Balochistan, and seven percent in former FATA.
Sindh
After Imran Khan (69 percent) former Foreign Minister and Chairman of Pakistan People’s Party, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is unsurprisingly most popular in Sindh with 13 percent of Google searches. Second in line is Punjab and third is Balochistan. After him is Nawaz (11 percent) followed by Maryam (7 percent).
Balochistan
Imran Khan leading the slot here with 84 percent followed by Nawaz (9 percent), Maryam (4 percent), and Biawal Bhutto (3 percent). Hamza does not invoke public curiosity even the slightest.
Gilgit Baltistan
Imran Khan has a 100 percent popularity rate in Gilgit Baltistan, where it seems no other party leader stands a chance, implying that there were minor searches of them in GB.
Former FATA
Interestingly, in the former federally administered tribal areas, only Imran Khan and Nawaz Sharif were searched for, Khan at 93 per cent of searches and Nawaz at seven percent.
Though Google search and Google trends are not the ultimate parameter of a party leader’s popularity, they certainly are proof of what netizens are most interested in and the social media footing of a politician.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief organizer Maryam Nawaz has urged Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters to stop indulging in what she described as politics of hate.
“Today I want to say that I am ready to forget all the oppression against us,” Maryam said. “I promise today and invite everyone to put an end to all this once and for all,” she said at a rally in Kasur.
“I want a Pakistan where the government concentrates on serving people instead of avenging the past,” she said.
In a recent appearance on the Hum News program ‘Faisala Aap Ka with Asma Shirazi,’ Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif stated that ‘Vote Ko Izzat Do’ has a different meaning.
When asked why the civilian supremacy narrative of ‘Vote ko Izzat do’ can’t be heard anymore, he said, “It means respecting the person who voted for me and fulfilling the trust they have shown in me.”
He claimed that the May 9 riots were a deliberate conspiracy against Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir, masterminded by Imran Khan, the founding chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), and his party.
Shehbaz Sharif highlighted the distinction between statements and conspiracies. He alleged that on May 9, the founder of PTI and his team conspired to create divisions within the military, leading to betrayal against Pakistan. He criticized PTI for diverting the nation from progress to chaos.
Sharif expressed his views on various matters, including the loss of PTI’s iconic electoral symbol ‘Bat,’ attributing it to the party’s missteps. He also commented on Imran Khan’s recent 10-year jail sentence, emphasizing that the issue is about upholding the law, irrespective of whether decisions are perceived as good or bad.
Responding to a question about PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto’s invitation for a public debate, Shehbaz Sharif said, “I’m in favor of Bilawal’s debate challenge but let him extend the invitation in his province for a fair comparison.”
Regarding political decisions, Shehbaz Sharif mentioned that if the majority is not attained through elections, consultations would be held. He confirmed that Nawaz Sharif would be the candidate for the premiership, subject to consultation, and the decision on the Chief Executive of Punjab would be made through consultation with Nawaz Sharif. The decision for the presidency would be made by the parliament.
Stressing the importance of political and economic negotiations, Shehbaz Sharif called for the completion of the five-year term in Parliament. He recounted an incident during tensions with India, where the founder of PTI allegedly refused to attend a meeting, leading the then head of the army, General Bajwa, to return in disappointment.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) head Nawaz Sharif criticised former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who was given a 10-year sentence in the cipher case, by saying that he had never revealed any diplomatic document to save his government.
Sharif used strong words to slam Khan in an election rally in Bahawalnagar district on Tuesday, accusing him of plotting a “conspiracy” that compromised national security.
The PML-N supremo also praised the people of Haroonabad for coming out in large numbers to welcome him.
“Despite being subjugated, I had never revealed any state secret nor compromised national security,” Nawaz said while pointing fingers at Khan, adding that he “attacked” the country’s integrity to save his rule.
“I am still standing before the nation despite facing cruel oppression. I had been ousted from the premiership for not receiving a salary from my son. I was removed from the premiership thrice which also resulted in losses to the country.”
Nawaz Sharif also said that inflation was under control as well as farmers and common people were happy in his previous tenures.
The PML-N supremo blamed Khan for shaking the foundations of the country during his four-year rule.
During the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)-led government in 2023, Pakistan made improvements in its ranking on the Transparency International (TI) Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI).
The improvement in ranking shows that corruption decreased during the Shehbaz Sharif-led government as compared to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s tenure from 2018–2022.
According to TI’s previous report, corruption in Pakistan increased since 2018.
Imran Khan promised to wipe out corruption in Pakistan when he came into power. However, during his tenure, Pakistan’s ranking on the global corruption index went down, the opposite of what he had promised.
According to a TI report released on Tuesday, Pakistan is now on number 133 among 180 countries.
The previous report ranked Pakistan at 140, while the country’s overall score fell to 27 in the same year — the lowest since 2012.
The recent report from TI indicates that Pakistan’s score on CPI increased by two points from 27 to 29. Additionally, the country’s rank has improved by 7 positions.