LAHORE: A by-election to fill the vacant Senate seat from Punjab will take place tomorrow, July 21, 2025, following the passing of Senator Sajid Mir.
The Provincial Election Commission announced that polling will be held at the Punjab Assembly Hall, which has been designated as the polling station for the election.
The Provincial Election Commissioner Punjab will serve as the returning officer for the by-poll. Members of the Punjab Assembly will cast their votes to elect the new senator, with polling scheduled from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM without interruption. All Members of the Provincial Assembly (MPAs) have been instructed to bring their official assembly identification cards to participate in the voting process.
A detailed guideline has been issued to ensure smooth conduct of the election. Voters will receive their ballots from the Returning Officer, and the ballots will list candidates’ names alphabetically in Urdu script.
Voting will occur in private, with strict rules to maintain the secrecy of the ballot. MPAs are prohibited from speaking to other voters or candidates during the voting process, and mobile phones must be surrendered before entering the polling station.
There is a tight contest between candidates Hafiz Abdul Karim from the ruling party and its allies, opposition candidate Mehr Abdul Sattar, and independent contenders Khadija Siddiqui and Ejaz Hussain. A total of 369 members are eligible to vote, with opposition member Mian Aslam Iqbal absent as he has not yet taken the oath.
There is tight contests between government candidate Hafiz Abdul Karim and opposition’s candidate Mehr Abdul Sattar. According to the Punjab Assembly party position, the government alliance has a clear lead with 261 votes. The number of votes of the opposition in the Punjab Assembly is 108.
The election will be conducted according to Article 226 of the Constitution, ensuring a secret ballot and upholding transparency and fairness in the process.
