PPP's Akhtar Abbas Nashad wins by-election in Skardu's GBA-09

In a closely contested by-election held on Sunday in Skardu-III (GBA-09), PPP candidate Akhtar Abbas Nashad emerged victorious by a margin of 305 votes. The election witnessed a voter turnout of 51.79 percent. Nashad secured 8,399 votes while his opponent, independent candidate Wazir Saleem, garnered 8,094 votes. The by-election took place post the GB Supreme Appellate Court's disqualification of PPP candidate Fida Muhammad Nashad, Abbas's father, who had been declared a returned candidate during the June general elections.

The electoral contest was intense, with the two candidates clashing right up until the final stages. To ensure a secure process, over 800 police personnel, alongside GB Scouts, were deployed as part of special security arrangements. The electoral proceedings were largely peaceful, aided by a local holiday to facilitate voter participation.

Analysts had anticipated a tight race between the PPP's Abbas and the independent candidate Saleem, believing Abbas could capitalize on his father's votes, compounded by public sympathy following his father's disqualification. The district's 61 polling stations were categorized as sensitive, medium-sensitive, or normal. With this seat, the PPP will now hold 15 out of the 33 seats in the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly.

Presently, the PPP boasts 14 seats, followed by the PML-N with nine, the Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party with six, and the Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen and a PTI-backed independent each holding a single seat.