As early results of the election to Pakistan's National Assembly held on Thursday trickle in, all major political parties are tied neck-and-neck. However, Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-backed Independent candidates are currently leading, winning five of the 12 seats.
According to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) website, PTI-backed Independents won five, while four were won by the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) (PML-N), the party of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. Three seats were taken by the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the son of assassinated premier Benazir Bhutto.
Khan's candidates are facing the electoral battle without the party symbol and name after ECP banned PTI from using it on the technical grounds that it did not hold an internal leadership election. The main battle is expected to be between candidates backed by PTI candidates and PML-N, who analysts say is being backed by the powerful military.
The polling ended at 5 pm on Thursday but the first official result was announced 10 hours later at 3 am on Friday, triggering speculations of foul play to manipulate the outcome. However, the ECP cited "internet issue" as the reason behind the delay. The government said it suspended mobile phone services ahead of the election on Thursday as a security measure, a move which was widely condemned.
A party needs 133 seats in parliament for a simple majority but many analysts believe the vote may not produce a clear winner.
However, local media reports said that the PTI claimed the lead on 154 seats. PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Khan in a statement claimed that the party was also in a position to form governments in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. He urged the ECP to announce all results without any further delay.
There are also rumours that the PML-N and PPP would form a coalition government but Sharif dismissed the suggestions. "Don't talk about a coalition government. It is very important for a government to get a clear majority... It should not be relying on others," he told reporters after casting his vote in the eastern city of Lahore. As the election progressed, the PML-N acknowledged a "huge" voter turnout in favour of PTI but expressed hope that Sharif would get a record fourth term as the country's prime minister.
PML-N leader Maryam Aurangzeb said that the results are changing as they come in, stressing that preliminary results cannot be relied upon to say who's winning from a said constituency. "We were in the lead [when] suddenly the results stopped coming in," she said. She also claimed PML-N's Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz's victory on the PP-159 seat for the Punjab assembly.
There are also reports that the Returning Officers allegedly stopped issuing results to the media following an 'apparent victory' of PTI in most seats in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provinces.