Campaign

Bilawal Zardari [edit]

The Pakistan Peoples Party announced that Bilawal Zardari would run as their candidate for the next Prime Minister, despite the fact that Bilawal Zardari is still too young to become Prime Minister. The Pakistani constitution states that a person must be 25 years old to become Prime Minister, an age Bilawal Zardari will not become until September 2013.^[28] On 5 May, it was revealed that that Bilawal Zardari had left Pakistan for Dubai and would not be present at all on election day. He unexpectedly left the country and would not be addressing any party rallies or meetings. His party also announced that he will not return until after the elections are over.^[29]

Imran Khan [edit]

On 20 March, Imran Khan conducted an intra-party election for leadership of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party. Imran Khan was elected unopposed as no other candidate dared to contest for the top post. Speaking to media representatives after submitting his nomination papers, Khan informed the media that no-one from his party will be eligible to hold the post of the party chairman for more than two terms. Khan has been advocating that the intra-party elections will ultimately finish off the 'dynasty-type, family limited companies politics' from the country.^[30]

During a campaign rally in Lahore, Khan fell 14 feet as he was stepping off an improvised forklift. He was seen to be bleeding and unconscious with a gash on his head. He was then taken to Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital where Khan was treated for two fractures to his spinal column.^[31]

Nawaz Sharif [edit]

Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is seeking a historic third term win on behalf of his party, the Pakistan Muslim League (N).^[32] The PML(N)campaign is being led by Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif.

Pervez Musharraf [edit]

On 24 March, former President Pervez Musharraf returned from self-imposed exile to run in the election despite threats from the Pakistani Taliban on his life,^[33] similar to the return of Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated shortly after returning.

Musharraf's candidature was rejected from his home town of Karachi on the grounds that he violated the constitution of Pakistan and that he had sacked senior judges during his presidency. Electoral returning officer Ikramur Rehman upheld the objections by his rivals. A PML (Q) official, Afzal Agha, said "this is a biased decision." He was also rejected from the Punjabi town of Kasur. However he was later approved in the Khyber-Pakthunwa town of Chitral.^[34] The Supreme Court ordered him to appear over charges of treason and barred him from leaving the country on 8 April.^[35] On 16 April, an appeal for his approval from Chitral decided by a court in the provincial capital of Peshawar in which he was barred on the grounds that he violated the constitution by imposing emergency rule in 2007. His lawyer said that he would appeal to the Supreme Court.^[36] He was also ordered to be kept under house arrest for two weeks. On 23 April, He appeared at a Rawalpindi court under tight security on charges relating to the assassination of Benazir Bhutto.^[37] On 25 April, he was formally arrested for the same charge.^[38] The Peshawar High Court then banned him for life from taking part in politics activities. Chief Justice Dost Mohammad Khan said: "The former dictator [Musharraf] had ordered senior judges and their families be put under house arrest and twice abrogated the country's constitution."^[39] In reaction to the ban, a party spokeswoman for the All Pakistan Muslim League said that it would boycott the election.^[40] He was granted US$20,000 bail on 20 May.^[41]

Violence [edit]

Pre-election violence [edit]

On 28 April, the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for two bombings at the offices of independent candidates. In Kohat, a bombing at Noor Akbar Khan's offices killed six and critically wounded others. In the suburbs of Peshawar, a bomb at Nasir Khan Afridi's office killed three people.^[42]The next day, at least eight people, including the son of Afghani cleric Qazi Amin Waqad, were killed and 45 others were wounded in a suicide attack in Peshawar. The bomb had targeted Sahibzada Anees, a senior city administrator, who had just passed the area. Hilal was a part of the Afghan Hich Peace Council and was organising a meeting of Afghan and Pakistani religious scholars to oppose militancy.^[43] The same day, at a Karachi press conference the leaders of the PPP, MQM and Awami National Party said that the attacks would not stop then from participating in the election. ANP Secretary General Bashir Jan said that his party had previously made sacrifices in relations to the 2012 assassination of Bashir Bilour, the former party leader. His statement followed an explosion that wounded three children near the election office of Mohammad Ahmed Khan, the ANP candidate from Charsadda in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.^[44] On 2 May, a bomb exploded outside the MQM headquarters in which seven people were injured.^[45] On 4 May, at least three people were killed and 34 others were wounded when two bombs targeted the election office of the MQM in the Azeezabad area of Karachi.^[46]

In a rally in Kurram Valley, at least 15 people were dead and over 50 injured at a Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam rally for candidates Munir Orakzai and Ain u Dun Shakir. The rally was part of the faction led by Fazal-ur-Rehman. The latter was slightly wounded.^[47] Afghan-Pakistan border tensions also flared.^[48] On 9 May, the son of former Prime Minister Yousef Raza Gilani, Ali Haider Gilani, was abducted following a gunfight at a rally in Multan that killed his personal secretary.^[49]

Election day violence [edit]

Main article: 2013 Pakistan election day bombings

Scattered gun and bomb attacks marred an otherwise celebratory day in a nation mired in economic crisis and locked in a fight with a virulent native Taliban insurgency. By the time polls closed in the evening, at least 20 people had died in attacks, the most serious targeting a pro-U.S. political party in the southern port city of Karachi. The violence, which included blasts outside a political office in Karachi that left 10 dead, capped a bloody election season. More than 130 people have been killed in bombings and shootings over the campaign, prompting some to call this one of the deadliest votes in the country's history.^[50] Several bombs were reportedly defused before voting began on Saturday morning, according to Al Jazeera. No one has so far taken the responsibility for the attacks, except for the initial two blasts in the coastal city of Karachi, claimed by Pakistani Taliban.^[51]