An analysis of the General Elections 2024 today revealed a significant disparity in voter representation in the NA-35 Kohat constituency, where the winning Member of the National Assembly (MNA) secured the seat with the support of just 19 percent of the total registered electorate.

The victor was elected with 128,594 votes, constituting a 51 percent majority of the 249,848 ballots cast on election day. However, this figure represents a small fraction of the 666,239 registered voters in the constituency, where overall turnout stood at a modest 38 percent.

According to the Final Consolidated Result (Form-49), while NA-35 was among only 70 of 266 National Assembly constituencies where the winner achieved over half of the polled votes, a sizeable portion of the active electorate-115,525 voters or 46 percent-did not cast their ballot for the winning candidate.

The vote was further fragmented among other contenders. The runner-up candidate secured 24 percent of the ballots cast, while the third-placed individual received 18 percent. The remaining candidates collectively obtained five percent of the votes. Additionally, 5,729 ballots, or two percent of the total, were declared invalid and did not contribute to any candidate”s tally.

This data is part of a constituency-wise analysis by the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN), which examines the unrepresentativeness of Pakistan”s electoral results. The series highlights how the First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) system can skew representation, particularly in Pakistan’s common multi-candidate contests.

FAFEN’s report suggests that such electoral outcomes, where a majority of voters may feel their choice is not reflected in the result, can raise questions about legitimacy and potentially contribute to political instability.