Peshawar, July 21, 2025: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) emerged as the leading party in the Senate elections from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, securing six out of the 11 seats up for grabs, while opposition parties collectively claimed five seats, according to unofficial and unconfirmed results.
All 145 members of the KP Assembly cast their votes in the polling, which was held under the supervision of the Election Commission of Pakistan.
On the general seats, PTI candidates Murad Saeed, Faisal Javed, Mirza Afridi, and Noorul Haq Qadri were declared winners, securing 26, 22, and 21 votes respectively.
Opposition parties won the remaining three general seats, with victories for Niaz Ahmad of PML-N, Talha Mehmood of PPP and Atta-ul-Haq of JUI-F.
On the reserved women’s seats, PTI’s Rubina Naz secured victory with 89 votes, while PPP’s Rubina Khalid claimed the second seat.
For the technocrat seats, PTI’s Azam Swati and JUI-F’s Dilawar Khan emerged as winners.
Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur successfully defused internal tensions within PTI ahead of the vote by persuading four disgruntled party members to withdraw from the race, avoiding a “PTI vs. PTI” scenario. The CM held overnight talks with the dissidents. However, one member, Khurram Zeeshan, refused to step down but ended up receiving no votes.
The delayed Senate elections were made possible after the recent swearing-in of MPAs on reserved seats.
PML-N’s Abdul Karim wins Senate seat in Punjab
In the Senate by-election held in the Punjab Assembly, PML-N’s Hafiz Abdul Karim secured a resounding victory with 243 votes. His main opponent, Mehr Abdul Sattar, backed by the opposition, garnered 99 votes.
Out of the 368 total members of the Punjab Assembly, 345 cast their votes; three ballots were rejected. Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz was among those who voted.
Polling was held at the Punjab Assembly from 9 AM to 4 PM. The seat had fallen vacant following the death of Professor Sajid Mir, leader of the Markazi Jamiat Ahl-e-Hadith Pakistan.
Other contenders included independent candidates Khadija Siddiqi and Ijaz Hussain.
PTI faces internal rift over Senate candidate list
Meanwhile, a new controversy has surfaced within PTI regarding alleged manipulation of the Senate candidate list for KP.
A private news channel claimed citing sources that that some senior PTI leaders, including Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, party spokesperson Barrister Saif, and other central figures, allegedly withheld the final candidate list from party founder Imran Khan.
According to reports, the KP chapter submitted its list of recommended candidates on July 15, which included Murad Saeed, Irfan Saleem, Faisal Javed, and Khurram Zeeshan — but not Mirza Afridi. However, the central leadership reportedly sidelined this list in favor of alternative names.
Barrister Gohar strongly denied the allegations, insisting he did not alter or conceal any names from the party founder.
