The number of voters has fallen by 3,817 in the last two-and-a-half years PHOTO: AFP
ISLAMABAD:
A decline in the number of registered voters in the capital has been witnessed in the electoral lists finalised and issued by the top election body for the upcoming local government (LG) elections in the city.
The number of voters has fallen by 3,817 in the last two-and-a-half years.
According to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the number of registered voters in Islamabad for the May 2013 general elections was 680,612. This has dropped to 676,795 according to fresh rolls issued by the commission.
Of the 676,795 registered voters, 366,899 are men and 309,896 are women.
An ECP spokesperson has said that the decline is due to voters shifting their votes. During local government elections, voters prefer to cast votes in their hometowns, he explained.
Voter lists finalised by the ECP for the LG polls on November 30 in Islamabad are “fresh, authentic and reliable”, the spokesperson added.
Polling scheme
The commission on Friday also issued the polling scheme for the capital.
A total of 640 polling stations — 261 for men, 256 for women and 123 combined — will be set up across the capital, with a total of 2,156 polling booths.
640 presiding officers and 6,468 assistant presiding officers will be deputed to conduct the elections.
With 22,760 registered voters — 12,936 male and 9,824 female — Union Council-21 Sohan Dehati, is the largest UC in Islamabad. UC-21 comprises of Sohan village, Khanna Kak and Shakrial, among other areas. Some 69 polling booths will be established in this union council alone on Election Day.
Meanwhile, UC-44, comprising of Bokra and Sorain villages, is the smallest union council, with 4,709 registered voters — 2,820 male and 1,889 female. Some 17 polling booths will be set up at UC-44.
The capital has been divided in 50 union councils, where polling for the first party-based local government elections will be held on November 30.
Out of the 50 UCs, some 19 have over 15,000 registered voters each, while 13 have under 10,000 registered voters each.
According to the ECP, as many as 2,396 candidates from across Islamabad will be on the ballot in the LG elections, competing for various positions.
Though the ECP has yet to finalise party-wise lists of contesting candidates, initial details say independents form the majority. The remaining will contest elections on the platform of nearly two-dozen political parties.
Islamabad District Election Commissioner Chaudhry Aleem Shahab said party-wise list of candidates was still being compiled and would be finalised soon.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 21th, 2015.
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