Thursday 28 / November / 2024
Polling stations in Pakistan have officially closed.
DW's reporter in Karachi, Shamil Shams, has described how voting in the country's general elections was marred by communication disruption and sporadic clashes in some towns.
The turnout appeared to be low in many parts of the country, he said.
Three-time former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is expected to win the vote, according to Shams. But he says supporters of another ex-premier, Imran Khan, are also hoping that the incarcerated politician’s popularity will translate into an electoral success.
TV channels are expected to make projections of first results a few hours after the close of voting.
Pakistani voters have spoken to DW about what they see as the issues facing their country and why it is important to cast a ballot.
One man stressed that it was the obligation of everyone who was eligible to go out and vote.
"Voting is a sacred duty. Everyone should cast their vote as soon as possible. This will change the destiny of our country, God willing," he said.
This was also the opinion of another voter, who was, however, less optimistic about the outcome.
"Well, to be very honest, I have zero expectations of the whole electoral process. [...] But I think we have to vote because, you know, you can say that democracy, even the worst democracy, is better than aristocracy or bureaucracy," he said.
But another man expressed optimism that the election might have a transformative effect.
"Voting will bring a change. It happened before and change will come again. It's our belief that one day, through our votes, this system will change," he said.
One woman also spoke about how voting was the only way to effect change.
"Every single vote can change the whole country scenario, you know we are in very poor condition nowadays. Our country is facing so many problems," she said.
Another woman detailed what she saw as the main issues confronting the country.
"The economical condition. And the miserable condition of the lower class. And the middle class also, it's become miserable. No facilities, no basic facilities [like] education, no education facilities, no medical facilities. And there is a gap between rich, I mean, aristocratic families and the people. It's become larger and larger day by day," she said.
More than 128 million registered voters are eligible to choose the South Asian country's next government.
A fairly clear picture of the outcome is likely early on Friday, with counting continuing through the night. The Pakistani Interior Ministry announced that mobile telephone services were "partially restored" in some areas.
Those include cities in Punjab province, some in the southwestern Balochistan province and the majority of the southern province Sindh, except for the greater Karachi area.
According to the report, the caretaker government had assured Pakistanis that network connectivity would not be affected during the election day. However, just before the beginning of voting on Thursday, mobile internet services were shut down 'temporarily'.
The Ministry of Interior, eight minutes ahead of the beginning of the voting process, said the cellular services across Pakistan would remain suspended as part of the 'security measures', noting that they were 'inevitable'.
"Mobile services will be restored in the entire country soon," the ministry added on X, formerly Twitter.
