Imran Khan Allies Take Lead in Pakistani Election

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Facts

• Voters cast their ballots in Pakistan's contentious election on Thursday. In a surprising turn of events, independent candidates aligned with imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan took the lead despite not being able to run as members of Khan's PTI party.¹
• The final results are still inconclusive. The incumbent PML-N party of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif was the overwhelming favorite to win the parliamentary elections, and long reporting delays sparked accusations of fraud.¹
• Counting has almost finished for 265 available seats, and independent candidates — most of whom are affiliated with the PTI — have won 97 seats, more than any other party. Nawaz’s PML-N won 66 seats while the Pakistan People’s Party won 51 seats.²
• Despite returns showing PTI affiliates winning the most seats, ex-PM Sharif claimed that his party had won the largest share of the vote. Pakistan’s military — a powerful force in politics — has worked to freeze the PTI out of the election after Khan’s removal from office.³
• There have been reports of deaths and injuries stemming from violence around the election. Meanwhile, the EU has called for an investigation over possible election irregularities, and the US stated it's looking forward to 'timely, complete election results.'²
• A video was posted to Imran Khan’s X account Friday, showing an AI-generated Khan declaring victory to his supporters. Earlier this week the imprisoned former prime minister said that he would choose death over making a deal with Pakistan’s authorities.⁴

Sources: ¹Independent, ²Al Jazeera, ³CNBC and ⁴Daily Mail.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by Time. Despite all of the lies, deceit, and abuse of power, the PTI has the overwhelming mandate of the Pakistani people. Imran Khan has had the full weight of the Pakistani political and military regime aligned against him, yet his ideas cannot be stopped. Unfortunately, the powers that be are still working behind the scenes to undermine democracy and manipulate as many votes as they can. Pakistanis and proponents of democracy around the world cannot stand idly by as Nawaz Sharif and his allies attempt a coup. The PTI won this election, and it will deliver for its supporters.
• Narrative B, as provided by The Times of India. The Pakistan election still has no clear winners, but it appears that PML-N has secured the most votes. Pakistan has conducted a free and fair election where the will of the people is heard and honored. Unfortunately, violent extremists have perpetrated political violence that has delayed election results, but this election will be sorted out shortly. A coalition government will soon form to begin serving the Pakistani people.

Predictions