After 20-year gap, GB to hold LG polls on Aug 2: CEC

• Chief Election Commission Raja Shahbaz Khan says schedule for long-awaited LBs issued

• Says ROs, DROs and AROs appointed to oversee electoral process

• Nomination papers to be received from June 9 to 15

• Last local government elections held in 2004, says CEC

 SKARDU: The Gilgit-Baltistan Election Commission on Wednesday announced that, after a gap of more than 20 years, long-delayed local government (LG) elections in the region will now be held on August 2.

Addressing a press conference, Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Raja Shahbaz Khan said the schedule for the local body elections had been formally issued, and returning officers (ROs), district returning officers (DROs) and assistant returning officers (AROs) had been appointed.

Earlier this month, the GB Election Commission had stated that preparations for the polls were underway but had not announced a final date.

Polling for the Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly is scheduled to take place on June 7, after being rescheduled from January 24, 2026. The local government elections — announced after more than two decades — were earlier set for February 14, 2026, but were later postponed indefinitely due to harsh weather conditions in the region.

Under the newly issued schedule, a public notice will be released by returning officers on June 6, while nomination papers will be received from June 9 to 15. The elections will be held for union councils, district councils, town committees, municipal committees and municipal corporations.

CEC Raja Shahbaz Khan said the remaining phases of the electoral process have been outlined in the complete schedule. He noted that the last local government elections in the region were held in 2004, marking a gap of 22 years.

He added that delimitation and demarcation had been completed under the Gilgit-Baltistan Local Government Act 2014.

Khan further explained that the region previously operated under two systems — a local district council and union councils, with municipal committees in urban areas. Under the new structure, he said, town committees, municipal committees and municipal corporations would now function in urban areas.

Meanwhile, political parties in the region had remained uncertain about the timing of the elections before June, with some fearing a possible delay until October. Leaders had also noted that holding elections during Muharram, which begins on June 15 or 16 this year, or other religious observances such as Chehlum, would not be feasible.

Political stakeholders had therefore expressed concern that any postponement beyond June could effectively push the elections to September or October.