Gujranwala: In the recent General Elections of 2024, the elected Member of the National Assembly (MNA) from the NA-81 Gujranwala-V constituency garnered only 22 percent of support from the registered voters, despite securing victory with 43 percent of the votes cast. This outcome raises questions about electoral representation and the effectiveness of the First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) system in the region.
According to Free and Fair Election Network, the final consolidated results, known as Form-49, reveal that voter turnout in NA-81 was 52 percent, with 273,667 ballots cast out of 526,124 registered voters. While the winning candidate received 117,717 votes, 54 percent of those who voted, amounting to 148,809 individuals, chose other candidates. This discrepancy underscores the lack of majority support for the elected representative among voters who participated in the election on February 8, 2024.
The runner-up candidate received 40 percent of the votes, whereas the third-placed candidate and others shared the remaining 14 percent of the ballots. Additionally, 7,141 ballots, representing three percent of the total, were deemed invalid and did not contribute to any candidate’s tally.
This analysis is part of FAFEN’s broader examination of electoral representation in Pakistan. The series aims to shed light on the limitations of the FPTP system, where multi-candidate races often result in a significant portion of the electorate feeling unrepresented. Such outcomes may lead to questions about electoral legitimacy and contribute to political instability in the country. Further constituency analyses are available on the FAFEN website.