The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday advanced the process for holding long-awaited local government elections in 23 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, deciding to hold another round of consultations with the provincial government within 15 days before announcing the election date.
ECP moves closer to announcing local polls in 23 KP districts
PESHAWAR, Jul 14 (APP): The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday advanced the process for holding long-awaited local government elections in 23 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, deciding to hold another round of consultations with the provincial government within 15 days before announcing the election date.
The decision was taken during a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja. The meeting was attended by members of the Election Commission, Secretary ECP, Chief Secretary Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Secretary Local Government and other senior officials, said a press release.
The Chief Election Commissioner emphasized that the establishment of elected local governments was a constitutional obligation under Article 140-A of the Constitution and noted that the Elections Act requires the Commission to conduct local government elections within 120 days of the expiry of local councils’ tenure.
Officials informed the meeting that the terms of local government institutions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had expired on March 14 and June 19, 2026, while the delimitation process in all 23 districts had already been completed, enabling the ECP to conduct the elections whenever the schedule is finalized.
The commission was told that consultations with the provincial government were being carried out in accordance with the Elections Act and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Local Councils (Conduct of Elections) Rules, 2021, before the formal announcement of the poll date.
Chief Secretary Khyber Pakhtunkhwa informed the meeting that the ECP’s consultation letter, received on July 8, had been promptly placed before the provincial cabinet.
He assured the Commission that the provincial administration was fully prepared to extend administrative support and ensure smooth conduct of the elections.
The ECP directed the provincial government to provide a copy of the cabinet summary related to the matter and decided to reconvene consultations after 15 days to finalize the schedule for local government elections in the 23 districts.
