Lawmakers in Pakistan-administered Kashmir elect ruling party candidate as prime minister

Muzzafarabad, Pakistan - Legislators in Pakistan-administered Kashmir have chosen Syed Iftikhar Ali Gillani as prime minister on Friday after he received 30 out of 44 votes in the legislative assembly, according to the election commission and regional officials. Gillani, a member of Pakistan's ruling Pakistan Muslim League-N party, secured the position, marking the party's return to power in the area after a ten-year gap.

His main competitor, Mukhtar Ahmed Abbasi, representing the previous ruling Pakistan People’s Party, garnered 14 votes.

The election transpired following a boycott call by the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), which urged residents not to participate. The committee continues to hold rallies. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has extended his congratulations to Gillani on his election as premier in Kashmir, an area that is split between Pakistan and India.

Both nations assert sovereignty over the entire Himalayan region. The two countries have fought three wars since attaining independence from British colonial rule in 1947, with two of those conflicts centered around Kashmir.

Security concerns prompted the division of the legislative elections into phases. Despite the JAAC's call for a boycott, the elections proceeded as planned.