The opposition alliance is now just 20 seats away from a simple majority in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, bringing a potential power shift within reach.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led government currently holds 92 seats, while the opposition’s numbers have risen to 53, following the restoration of reserved seats after a Supreme Court verdict.
The KP Assembly has a total strength of 145, but at the moment, there are 115 elected members. Of the remaining 30, 26 seats are reserved for women and four for minorities.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Wednesday issued a notification regarding the reserved seats following the June 27 verdict given by the Supreme Court’s Constitutional Bench.
After the court ruling, the ECP reinstated the reserved seats, boosting the opposition’s position inside the assembly.
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), which had seven elected members, received 10 women and two minority seats, taking its total to 19.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), which started with six elected members, got nine reserved seats and now stands at 15.
Pakistan People’s Party’s (PPP) tally rose from four to 11 after being allocated 6 women and 1 minority seat.
PTI Parliamentarians now have three seats, up from two, and Awami National Party (ANP) also holds three seats after gaining one reserved seat.
In addition, two independent members of the provincial assembly (MPAs) — Hisham Inamullah and Ali Haider — are aligned with the opposition alliance, further strengthening their position.
To form a simple majority, a party or alliance needs support from at least 73 members. With 52 confirmed members and the backing of the two independents, the opposition still requires the rest of the seats to reach that threshold.
Speaking to Geo News, the opposition leader in KP said that while they haven’t taken any formal decision yet, they would need about 18-20 more members for a majority.
He noted that in the budget session, they had made it clear that this was PTI’s 12th and last budget, “unless the KP government seriously focuses on governance and law and order.” “We’re not in it for the sake of it,” he said.
