Senate election for vacant Khyber Pakhtunkhwa seat set for April 23

Islamabad: The Election Commission of Pakistan has announced the schedule for the election of a senator from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on a general seat that became vacant after the disqualification of Murad Saeed.

According to an official notification issued on Thursday, the election will be conducted under Article 224(5), read with Sections 107 and 127 of the Elections Act, 2017. The notification said members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provincial Assembly have been called upon to elect a new senator for the vacant seat.

Under the schedule released by the Election Commission of Pakistan, polling will take place on April 23. The vote will be held at the Provincial Assembly building in Peshawar.

Election schedule announced

The announcement formally sets in motion the process for filling the Senate seat that fell vacant following Murad Saeed’s disqualification. The Election Commission’s notification lays out the legal basis for the exercise and identifies the provincial assembly as the electoral college for the contest.

As stated in the notification, the election is being held in line with the relevant constitutional and legal provisions. These include Article 224(5) as well as Sections 107 and 127 of the Elections Act, 2017.

The polling venue has been fixed at the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly building in Peshawar, where members of the provincial legislature will cast their votes to choose the new senator.

Vacancy after Murad Saeed disqualification

The seat became vacant after Murad Saeed was disqualified, prompting the Election Commission to issue the election schedule for the by-election on the general seat from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

With the date now announced, members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provincial Assembly are set to elect a replacement on April 23 in Peshawar.

The Election Commission’s move comes through an official notification, which specifically calls upon the provincial lawmakers to take part in the election process for the vacant Senate seat.