The NA-249 constituency in Karachi will be heading to the polls on April 29 with the PTI, the PML-N, the PSP and the PPP all hoping to emerge the victor, once polling concludes.
This election is an important one, both for the Opposition and the PTI primarily because the ruling party has a narrow lead in the Parliament.
Hence, the important question is; can the PTI win the NA-249 by-election?
Before we answer that, let’s look at who the front-runners are in this electoral race.
Qadir Khan Mandokhail
First up is Qadir Khan Mandokhail, who is contesting on a Pakistan People’s Party ticket from NA-249.
The 58-year old is a lawyer by profession. In 2002, he contested elections for the first time from the PTI’s platform for the PS-89 constituency, managing to secure only 1,233 votes.
In 2008, Mandokhail contested independently and five years later, in 2013 he joined the PML-N. In 2018, he secured a PPP ticket to contest from NA-249 but lost.
Now on to Miftah Ismail, one of the most prominent names in the race.
Miftah Ismail
Mr. Ismail, who is a PhD in public finance, is the PML-N candidate in NA-249. The businessman joined the PML-N in 2011 and was later named the chairman of the board of investment.
In 2017, during the PML-N government, Ismail was appointed advisor to the prime minister for finance. In April 2018, barely a few hours before the budget was to be announced, Ismail was named the federal minister for finance.
Later in 2018, he was in the race for the NA-244 in Karachi, but could not secure a win.
Mustafa Kamal
Mustafa Kamal, who heads his own party, the Pak Sarzameen Party, is also in the electoral fray. The businessman and consultant ran for polls in 2002 on an MQM ticket after which he was elected as an MPA in the Sindh Assembly.
In 2003 he became the IT minister in Sindh while from 2005 to 2010, he was the mayor of Karachi. In 2016, he created his own political party, the Pak Sarzameen Party.
For the 2018 general elections, Kamal contested from two provincial and one National Assembly seats but lost.
Amjad Iqbal Afridi
The PTI’s candidate is Amjad Iqbal Afridi, a graduate who runs his own property business in the city.
Previously, Afridi served as the president of the PTI in District West Karachi. In 2018, he contested from PS-112 but could not emerge victorious from the race.
Who could win the by-election?
While it is difficult to call election results before the polling day, as per recent surveys, the PTI is a favorite to win the NA-249 by-poll.
IPSOS and Pulse findings suggest that more voters are expected to cast a ballot in the PTI’s favour. However, as per Gallup Pakistan, the PML-N has a slight lead over the ruling party.