Daily Times

KARACHI: 33 political parties, including the mainstream Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) were defeated by candidates of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf in general election 2018 in Karachi.

PTI clinched 13 National Assembly (NA) and 23 Provincial Assembly (PS) Sindh seats out of a total of 21 NA and 44 PS seats in city on which polling was held. The party had won just one NA and 2 PS seats in Karachi in 2013 election.

MQM-P, which had 17 NA and 35 PS seats in previous election, could only manage 7 NA and 15 PS seats. Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), with previously 2 NA and 5 PS seats, has lost one seat each of both legislature houses.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) failed to retain its only NA seat in the city, while other political parties and independent candidates failed to attract voters.

Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), Muttahida Majlis-e-Ammal (MMA), Rahe-e-Haq Party won one PS seat each.

Parties which failed to win any seat in Karachi include new-entrants Pak Sar Zameen Party (PSP), Awami National Party (ANP), All Pakistan Mulsim League (APML), Mohajir Qaumi Movement, Sunni Tehreek Pakistan (STP), Pakistan Muslim League Sher-e-Bengal (PMLS), Pakistan Mulsim League Alliance (PMLA), Justice Party, Jamat-e-Islami (JI), Pasban, Allah-o-Akbar Tehreek, Paktun Khwa Awami Milli Party and Grand National Alliance.

Experts and analysts were of the view that one of the vital reasons behind PTI’s success was young voters, between ages 18 and 23 years.

Around 1.5 million new voters were registered in the election commission list in Karachi during period of 2013 to June 2018, an official of National Database Registration Authority on condition of anonymity revealed.

Delimitation of constituencies in Karachi was another added factor that helped scattered youth to their franchise of vote in different modified maps of constituencies of the city, political pundits have maintained.