PML-N secures strong lead in AJK polls, wins 9 out of 13 seats in Mirpur as unofficial results pour in

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) emerged as the dominant party in the first phase of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly elections, securing nine of the 13 seats contested across Mirpur division, according to unofficial and unconfirmed results, while the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) won the remaining four seats in Mirpur district. Kotli and Chaksawari, Express news reported Tuesday.

Voting was held on Monday in 13 constituencies in the three districts from 8:00 a.m. to 18.00, after the electoral commission extended the voting by one hour from the planned closing time at 17.00.

The election will be held in three phases as per a revised schedule announced by AJK Chief Election Commissioner Ghulam Mustafa Mughal on July 21. The first phase covered all 13 constituencies of Mirpur Division, while polling in Muzaffarabad Division and the 12 refugee constituencies would be held on August 2, followed by August 2 (Rawala10ch) Division.

According to unofficial results, PML-N’s Azhar Sadiq won LA-1 Mirpur-I with 15,427 votes defeating PPP’s Muhammad Afsar Shahid who secured 9,832 votes. PPP’s Qasim Majeed won LA-2 Chaksawari with 12,904 votes while PML-N’s Azeem Bakhsh Chaudhry got 8,182 votes.

In LA-3 Mirpur-III, PPP’s Chaudhry Yasir Sultan secured victory with 11,676 votes ahead of PML-N’s Chaudhry Muhammad Saeed who got 9,832 votes. PML-N’s Chaudhry Rukhsar Ahmed won LA-4 Mirpur-IV with 20,172 votes defeating PPP’s Chaudhry Sohaib Arshad who got 13,865 votes.

In LA-5 Bhimber-I, PML-N’s Waqar Ahmad Noor secured 30,259 votes to defeat PPP’s Chaudhry Pervez Ashraf who got 29,574 votes. PML-N also won LA-7 Bhimber-III with Chaudhry Tariq Farooq getting 35,490 votes while independent candidate Chaudhry Anwarul Haq came second with 25,100 votes.

In LA-8 Kotli-I, PPP’s Zafar Iqbal Malik won with 19,535 votes defeating PML-N’s Malik Muhammad Nawaz Khan who secured 11,966 votes. PML-N’s Umair Naeem claimed LA-9 Kotli-II with 31,080 votes, ahead of PPP’s Javed Iqbal Budhanvi, who got 28,509 votes.

PPP retained LA-10 Kotli-III where Chaudhry Muhammad Yasin won with 12,431 votes while PML-N’s Fatah Mehmood-ul-Hassan secured 9,245 votes. In LA-11 Kotli-IV, PML-N’s Muhammad Asif won with 26,190 votes defeating PPP’s Chaudhry Muhammad Akhlaq who got 21,751 votes.

Read: PML-N rises in first phase of AJK elections

PML-N also secured LA-12 Kotli-V where Muhammad Riasat Khan got 35,168 votes while PPP’s Chaudhry Muhammad Yasin secured 30,320 votes. In LA-13 Kotli-VI, PML-N’s Raja Ayaz Ahmad Khan won with 21,856 votes ahead of Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party’s Nisar Ansar Abdali, who secured 15,859 votes.

Results for the LA-6 Bhimber-II were still incomplete at the time of reporting. With results from 100 out of 195 polling stations counted, PML-N’s Chaudhry Muhammad Razaq was leading with 21,210 votes, followed by Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party’s Ali Shan Chaudhry with 11,354 votes.

However, voter turnout was lower than in the previous AJK election, with fewer people casting their votes across the division.

Meanwhile, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the results reflected public confidence in PML-N’s leadership and said the party’s performance demonstrated support for Nawaz Sharif and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s vision for the development of Azad Kashmir.

Reacting to the result, PML-N leader and Punjab Senior Minister Maryam Aurangzeb said on X that the people of Mirpur had already expressed their support for the party during the visit of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on 24 July.

She said Monday’s vote had formally endorsed this decision, adding that Muzaffarabad had also delivered its verdict on July 21 and expressed confidence that voters in the remaining constituencies would support the PML-N in the next phase of polling on August 2.

The election was held amid allegations of fraud

Despite the elaborate security arrangements, election day was marred by allegations of fraud and sporadic violence as coalition partners at the center – the PML-N and the PPP – traded allegations of election interference throughout the day.

The PML-N first alleged the fraud ahead of the polling in Kotli’s LA-10 constituency after party leaders claimed that polling staff and polling materials had been found in a private residence instead of the designated polling station. The Electoral Commission later confirmed that it had arrested and suspended two presiding officers over the incident, replaced them with new officials and initiated legal proceedings under electoral law.

Read more: A door like violence, allegations of fraud shadow first phase of AJK elections

The PPP, meanwhile, repeatedly accused the federal government and the PML-N of using state machinery to influence the polls, alleging that armed supporters were trying to disrupt voting in several polling stations and demanding immediate intervention by the Election Commission. The party also complained that polling at a station in Kotli remained suspended for nearly two hours, depriving voters of their right to cast their votes.

Tensions further escalated in LA-9 Kotli-II (Nikyal) where PPP worker Mukhtar Younus was killed during the polling. The PPP alleged that he was shot during incidents involving armed supporters of a PML-N candidate, while PML-N leaders disputed the party’s account of the incident. Local authorities confirmed that one person was dead and two others, including the victim’s father, were injured.

As the accusations intensified, senior leaders from both parties held competing press conferences. The PPP accused the federal government of interfering in the election through development announcements and misuse of official resources, while the PML-N alleged that the PPP itself tried to manipulate the vote, claiming that ballot papers had been obtained from a rival candidate’s residence.

Throughout the day, the Election Commission maintained that strict action would be taken against any violations of the election code of conduct and said irregularities and negligence would not be tolerated. Despite the controversies, voting ended after an hour’s extension before the counting of votes began.