ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) secured a significantly higher number of seats in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Sindh, respectively, compared to their percentage of total votes polled.
Similarly, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) also gained more seats than its vote share in Punjab, while Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Pakistan (JUIP) received fewer seats relative to its vote percentage in KP, according to a Free and Fair Election Network (Fafen) report.
Disproportionate Seat Distribution Across Provinces
The report highlights disparities in how votes translated into assembly seats under Pakistan’s First-Past-the-Post (FPTP) electoral system.
- In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, JUIP secured 1,269,230 votes (15%) but won only seven (6%) seats in the provincial assembly. In contrast, PTI’s candidates received 3,093,306 votes (38%) and secured 85 (75%) seats.
- In Sindh, PPPP secured 5,228,678 votes (46%) but won 85 (65%) of the provincial assembly seats.
- Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQMP) also benefited in Sindh, winning 28 (22%) seats despite receiving 905,992 votes (8%).
- In Punjab, PTI obtained 11,272,578 votes (31%) and won 109 (37%) seats, whereas PML-N, with 11,515,206 votes (32%), secured 139 (47%) seats.
- In Balochistan, JUIP emerged as the leading party, securing 400,072 votes (18%) and winning nine (18%) seats.
Smaller Parties Struggle Under FPTP System
The report also sheds light on how several smaller parties, despite a notable vote share, struggled to convert votes into seats:
- Tehreek Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), the fourth-largest party in terms of vote count, failed to win a single National Assembly seat despite receiving 2,918,086 votes (5%). It secured only one seat in the Punjab Assembly with 3,047,019 votes (5%).
- JUIP, the fifth-largest party overall, won six National Assembly seats with 2,292,355 votes (4%) and 16 provincial assembly seats with 2,286,546 votes (4%).
- Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan (JIP), the sixth-largest party, received 1,345,371 votes (2%) for the National Assembly but failed to win a single seat. It secured three provincial assembly seats (two in Sindh and one in Balochistan) with 1,739,774 votes (3%).
Why the Discrepancy?
Explaining these imbalances, Sahibzada Saud, Team Lead of Research and Learning at Fafen, attributed the disparities to two key factors:
- Electoral System: The FPTP model awards victory to the candidate with the highest number of votes, without considering whether other candidates collectively received more votes. As a result, a party can win a disproportionately large number of seats without securing a corresponding percentage of total votes.
- Local Electoral Dynamics: Candidates often focus their campaigns on mobilizing specific groups rather than appealing to the broader electorate. This strategy allows them to win constituencies without needing an absolute majority of total votes cast.
These factors, the report notes, contribute to noticeable disparities in the overall seat distribution relative to party vote shares across the country.
