Pishin: The recently concluded General Election of 2024 in Pakistan has highlighted the disparity between voter support and electoral success under the country's First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) system. In the NA-265 constituency of Pishin, the elected Member of the National Assembly (MNA) secured victory by obtaining 52,436 votes, which accounted for 41% of the 129,019 votes cast. However, this figure represents only 17% of the 315,399 registered voters in the constituency.

According to Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN), the final consolidated result (Form-49) showed a voter turnout of 41% in the constituency. Despite achieving victory, the elected MNA did not receive the majority of support from those who participated in the voting process on February 8, 2024, as 71,942 voters, or 56%, chose other candidates. The candidate who came in second place garnered 24% of the votes cast, while the third-place candidate received 17%, with the remaining candidates collectively securing 15% of the votes. Additionally, 4,641 votes, representing 4%, were declared invalid.

This situation forms part of FAFEN's broader analysis of electoral representativeness across Pakistan's 266 National Assembly constituencies. Under the FPTP system, a candidate's success is determined by having the highest vote total, not necessarily a majority. FAFEN's data indicates that this can result in elected members who do not have majority support in their constituencies. In contrast, a proportional representation system would allocate legislative seats in accordance with vote shares, ensuring a wider reflection of voter preferences in elected bodies. The data from Pakistan's GE-2024 elections reveal a significant gap between the votes cast and the representation achieved across all constituencies.