| Parliament name (generic / translated) |
Majlis-E-Shoora / Parliament |
| Structure of parliament |
Bicameral |
| Chamber name |
National Assembly |
| Related chamber (for bicameral parliaments) |
Senate
|
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
17 February 2008 |
| Purpose of elections |
Elections were held for all the seats in the National Assembly following the dissolution of this body on 15 November 2007. |
The February 2008 elections to the National Assembly took place in a very tense atmosphere
following the assassination on 27 December 2007 of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.
Parliament's re-election of President Pervez Musharraf for a third term in October 2007 was boycotted by opposition parties. Over 80 opposition members tendered their resignation in protest. President Musharraf had come to power in October 1999 in a military coup. He resigned as army chief on 28 November 2007
one day before assuming his third term as President.
In the previous elections held in October 2002
the Pakistan Muslim League-Qaid-i-Azam (PML-Q)
which supported President Musharraf's government
became the largest party with 77 seats
but fell short of a majority. The Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians (PPPP)
which supported Ms. Bhutto
came in second with 63 seats. An alliance of six Islamist parties
the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA - United Council for Action)
took 45 seats. The Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) of exiled former prime minister Nawaz Sharif
who was ousted in the 1999 coup
took 14 seats.
In March 2007
President Musharraf dismissed the Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry for alleged corruption. His dismissal triggered widespread demonstrations by attorneys and opponents of the President. They argued that the decision was aimed at avoiding any constitutional challenges to Mr. Musharraf's third presidential bid. In July
the Supreme Court reinstated Mr. Chaudhry as Chief Justice.
In October and November
two exiled former prime ministers - Ms. Bhutto and Mr. Sharif - returned to Pakistan to participate in the electoral campaign. On 3 November
President Musharraf declared a state of emergency
postponing parliamentary elections indefinitely. He also suspended the Constitution and once again sacked Chief Justice Chaudhry. On 11 November
he announced that the National Assembly would be dissolved on 15 November
promising parliamentary elections before 9 January 2008.
Following mounting international pressure
on 16 December
President Musharraf lifted the state of emergency
reinstated the country's Constitution
and advanced the date of elections to 8 January.
The assassination of Ms. Bhutto on 27 December provoked street protests that turned into violence. The elections were subsequently postponed to 18 February.
In all
2
252 candidates
including 64 women
were vying for the 272 single-member constituencies. A total of 482 candidates stood for the 60 seats reserved for women
while 132 contested the 10 reserved seats for non-Muslim minorities. PML-N leader Mr. Sharif was barred from running due to criminal convictions following the 1999 coup. Elections in four constituencies
including the one that would have been contested by Ms. Bhutto
were postponed.
Pre-election polls indicated a strong lead for the opposition PPPP and the PML-N. Ms. Bhutto's widower
Mr. Asif Ali Zardari had taken over as leader of the PPPP. The PPPP said that it would work with President Musharraf if the elections were free and fair
while the PML-N called for President Musharraf's immediate resignation. Both parties pledged to restore democracy and improve the economy. They criticized the government for failing to take sufficient measures against rising prices
flour shortages and frequent power cuts.
The PML-Q called on voters' support for the government's achievements over the past five years
notably improvements to the education and welfare system. It called the PPPP a "party without leadership"
and argued that such a party would not be able to provide meaningful policies.
Other contenders included the Awami National Party from North West Frontier Province and the Jamiat Ulema-I-Islam (JUI-F) of the Islamic cleric
Maulana Fazlur Rahman. Only one major political force
the opposition All Parties Democratic Movement (APDM)
boycotted the elections.
Violence was rife during the election campaign. Two days before the polling day
a suicide bomber killed 37 people and injured over 90 at the PPPP rally. At least 20 people were killed in election-day violence
of whom 15 were reportedly PPPP members.
44 per cent of nearly 80 million registered voters turned out at the polls.
Final results for the 272 directly elected seats gave 98 seats to the PPPP (including seven independent candidates who joined the PPPP after the elections)
followed by the PML-N with 71 seats (including four independents). Presidential allies
the PML-Q and the MQM (Muttahida Qaumi Movement)
took 41 and 19 seats respectively.
On 19 March
the newly-elected National Assembly held its first session. Ms. Fehmida Mirza (PPPP) became the first woman to assume the post of National Assembly Speaker in Pakistan.
In the meantime
on 21 February
the PPPP and the PML-N announced that they would form a "government of national consensus". Both parties subsequently agreed to reinstate the judges who had been sacked by President Musharraf in November 2007.
On 24 March
the National Assembly elected former Speaker and top aide to Ms. Bhutto
Mr. Yousaf Raza Gilani (PPPP)
as Prime Minister. His 24-member cabinet was sworn in on 31 March. It comprised the PPPP
the PML-N
the Awami National Party
the JUI-F as well as one member from the Federally Administered Tribal Area.
On 12 August
the coalition government announced its intention to submit an impeachment motion against the President the following week
accusing him of corruption
economic mismanagement and violating the Constitution.
On 18 August
President Musharaff announced his resignation
while strongly denying the accusations. On the same day
the National Assembly officially accepted his resignation with immediate effect. Senate President Muhammadmian Soomro became acting President.
On 6 September
the electoral college comprising the National Assembly
the Senate and the provincial assemblies elected Mr. Zardari (PPPP) as the country's new President. He was sworn in on 9 September.
Note for the record on the by-elections held on 26 June:
The PML-N took three seats
while the PPPP took two. PML-N leader Mr. Sharif was once again barred from running. The court had ordered postponement of the election in his constituency
leaving it vacant as of 11 December. |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 17 February 2008 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
79'928'055
35'170'435 (44%)
34'301'612 |
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
Directly elected |
Reserved non-Muslims |
Reserved (women) |
|
| Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) |
125
|
98 |
4 |
23 |
|
| Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) |
91
|
71 |
3 |
17 |
|
| Pakistan Muslim League |
53
|
41 |
2 |
10 |
|
| Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) |
25
|
19 |
1 |
5 |
|
| Independents |
18
|
18 |
0 |
0 |
|
| Awami National Party (ANP) |
13
|
10 |
0 |
3 |
|
| Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) |
7
|
6 |
0 |
1 |
|
| Pakistan Muslim League (Functional) |
5
|
4 |
0 |
1 |
|
| National Peoples Party (NPP) |
1
|
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
| Balochistan National Party (Awami) |
1
|
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
| Pakistan People's Party (Sherpao) |
1
|
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
264
76
22.35%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Note on the distribution of seats:
In all
29 independents candidates were directly elected. After the elections
seven of them joined the PPPP and four joined the PML-N. As at 31 January 2009
two of the directly elected seats remained undecided for various reasons.
Sixteen women were directly elected.
Sources:
National Assembly (01.01.2010
13.01.2012)
http://www2.ecp.gov.pk/vsite/mis/gmis.htm
http://www.geo.tv/election2008/
|
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
