The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) emerged victorious in the by-elections held Thursday across 18 districts in Sindh, including Karachi, where electoral contests took place in six districts and one Cantonment Board. Of the 11 seats up for grabs in Karachi, the PPP secured 9, solidifying its stronghold in the region.
In the Karachi municipal and cantonment board elections, the PPP claimed four chairman seats, one vice-chairman seat, and four councillor seats. The party triumphed in the chairman seats of Malir and Korangi, while its vice-chairman candidate in Landhi also secured a win.
The PPP further strengthened its position with victories in four councillor seats, while the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) took one, and an independent candidate claimed another. The PPP’s councillor wins included seats in the municipalities of Malir and Ibrahim Hyderi, while JI secured a councillor seat in Manghopir. An independent candidate emerged victorious in the Cantonment Board elections.
In Karachi’s South district, the PPP completed a “hat trick” by winning the chairman seat for UC 13 Clifton. In the high-profile mayoral race, PPP’s Karamullah Waqasi took the vacant position with 3,789 votes, beating JI’s Noorul Salam (847 votes) and independent candidate Muhammad Babar Khan (659 votes).
The PPP also maintained momentum in other districts. In the Central district’s Gulberg Town UC 5, JI’s Irfan Shah won the vice-chairman seat with 955 votes, while PPP’s Muneeb Hassan secured second place with 592 votes. An independent candidate, Nadir Khan, placed third with 351 votes.
In Hyderabad, early results indicate that the PPP secured two chairman seats and one vice-chairman seat, while independent candidate Adnan Rasheed won a vice-chairman seat in the same district. In Sukkur, the PPP defeated JUI to capture one UC chairman seat, while in Nawabshah, the PPP claimed victory in all four available chairman seats.
A total of 388 candidates contested 42 seats across Sindh, while 31 seats were won unopposed, and four remained vacant due to incomplete documentation. In Karachi alone, 85 candidates vied for 10 contested seats, while 303 candidates competed for seats in the remaining 20 districts.
The Election Commission designated 213 polling stations as highly sensitive and 50 as sensitive, out of a total of 274 across the province. Heightened security measures were put in place to ensure a peaceful and fair electoral process.
