The two Senate candidates from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) have withdrawn from the upcoming Senate elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, scheduled for July 20, 2025, to allow for potential unopposed victories, following an agreement between the provincial government and the opposition parties.
Waqas Orakzai, the covering candidate for PTI, announced his withdrawal after a meeting with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur. Orakzai clarified, “I am not withdrawing under any pressure. I received a call from Firdous Shamim Naqvi, and I am withdrawing my nomination at his request because he is a close friend of the PTI founder.”
Gandapur commended Orakzai’s loyalty: “His decision demonstrates his loyalty to the party and its founder, Imran Khan.”
Read: KP Senate Seats Deal Intact: CM Gandapur Confirms Amid PTI Internal Dissent
In a parallel development, PTI’s covering candidate for the technocrat seat, Syed Irshad Hussain, also withdrew by submitting a formal letter to the Election Commission.
Recent reports have suggested that all candidates in the KP Senate elections will win unopposed due to a mutual agreement among the parties. The PTI party has resolved its internal disputes, which led to candidates withdrawing from the race. According to this arrangement, PTI will receive six Senate seats, while the opposition will get five. The PPP and JUI-F will each secure two seats, and PML-N will gain one seat.
PTI’s core and political committees have finalised candidates for the general seats, including Murad Saeed, Faisal Javed, Mirza Khan Afridi, and Noor-ul-Haq Qadri; Rubina Naz for the women’s seat; Azam Swati for the technocrat seat; and Mishal Yousafzai for the seat vacated by Sania Nishtar.
