Overview
- Polling for the first phase of the Azad Jammu & Kashmir assembly elections was held Monday in Mirpur Division across 13 seats with 1.44 million registered voters and voting hours set from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
- Election authorities established 2,316 polling stations graded by sensitivity and issued a code of conduct that bars use of official protocol or state resources for campaigning.
- A three‑tier security plan deployed about 18,560 law‑enforcement personnel plus roughly 2,100 Pakistan Army troops to polling sites to protect voters and preserve order.
- Reports of election‑day violence include the killing of a PPP worker in Nikial and multiple complaints from PPP leaders seeking repolls at specific Kotli polling stations and demanding Election Commission intervention.
- Political dynamics shifted when MQM‑P announced full support for PML‑N by withdrawing its candidates, and the outcome of pending investigations and any repoll orders will shape whether results are seen as legitimate.