Islamabad/Gilgit, June 8, 2026: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Monday rejected the tentative results of the Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly elections, alleging widespread irregularities, vote manipulation and rigging, and demanding a re-election in a constituency in Astore district.
The party’s reaction came as preliminary results from Sunday’s elections indicated that the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had emerged as the leading political force, securing leads in 10 constituencies, followed by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) with six seats and independent candidates with five.
Addressing a press conference, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan claimed that the party had been systematically prevented from campaigning in the run-up to the elections, describing the situation as part of a “planned arrangement” aimed at keeping PTI out of the electoral process.
He said PTI-backed candidates were leading in only two constituencies based on the preliminary count — Hunza, where Naik Karim was ahead, and Gilgit, where Sohail Abbas was leading. He added that PTI ally Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM) was leading in Skardu through candidate Muhammad Kazim.
However, Gohar alleged that PTI-backed candidates had initially been in winning positions in as many as eight constituencies, including seats in Astore, Diamer, Nagar and Ghizer, before the results were allegedly altered through what he termed rigging, vote stuffing and bogus voting.
The PTI chairman specifically called for a re-poll in Rehmanpur, Astore, claiming the party had presented evidence of 167 bogus votes to election officials.
“PTI rejects the process, results and vote count of this election,” Gohar said, alleging that candidates lacking genuine public support had been awarded victory.
Drawing parallels with Pakistan’s 2024 general elections, he claimed that the public mandate had once again been manipulated.
Gohar announced that the party would issue a detailed white paper documenting its objections and would consult political allies regarding a protest movement in Gilgit-Baltistan.
“We will also observe a black day on the day the chief minister takes oath,” he said.
The PTI chairman further demanded representation in the assembly’s reserved seats, calling for the allocation of one women’s reserved seat and one technocrat seat to PTI.
During and after polling, both PTI and PPP raised concerns regarding alleged irregularities, particularly delays in the issuance of Form-45 documents used to verify polling-station results.
PTI had repeatedly accused authorities of restricting its election campaign in Gilgit-Baltistan, alleging that party leaders were detained, prevented from holding rallies and, in some cases, expelled from the region.
The party maintained that such actions undermined the fairness and transparency of the electoral process.
Separately, the opposition alliance Tehreek Tahaffuz Ayeen-e-Pakistan (TTAP) also rejected the election outcome during a consultative meeting chaired by Mehmood Khan Achakzai.
In a statement issued after the meeting, TTAP described the Gilgit-Baltistan elections as an “action replay” of the 2024 general elections and condemned what it called efforts to exclude PTI from the democratic process.
“When decisions are going to be made elsewhere, what is the point of holding elections?” the alliance questioned, arguing that both the electoral process and election authorities had lost credibility.
The alliance also expressed concern over the law and order situation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, urging authorities to address public grievances through dialogue.
Referring to the recent ban on the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), TTAP said prohibiting representative organizations was not a solution and called for greater political engagement with affected groups.
According to unofficial results received so far, PPP remains the frontrunner in the Gilgit-Baltistan elections, while PML-N, independent candidates and PTI-backed contenders continue to compete for the remaining seats.
The final political composition of the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly will become clearer once the Election Commission announces the official results and resolves any objections raised by political parties.
