Summary proposing polling date will be forwarded to president of Pakistan for approval once voter rolls final
GILGIT:
As Gilgit-Baltistan heads toward general elections, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Raja Shahbaz Khan on Tuesday said the voter registration process was nearing completion, with the total number of registered voters expected to reach nearly one million in line with the 2023 census.
“We will have nearly two hundred thousand additional voters this time,” the CEC said, drawing a comparison with the 2020 elections.
He said the current assembly would complete its constitutional term on November 24, after which an interim government would take charge to oversee the electoral process.
He added that a summary proposing the polling date would be forwarded to the president of Pakistan for approval once the voter rolls were finalised.
Speaking at a press conference in Gilgit, the CEC said that 774,124 voters were currently registered across the region, while 142,000 new voters were yet to be added. Another 75,000 entries would be corrected, bringing the final voter count to 991,124.
He urged citizens who had not yet registered to ensure their inclusion before the election schedule is announced. “In the 2020 elections, the total number of voters was 743,000, while according to the latest census, the region’s population now stands at around 1.7 million,” he noted.
Raja Shahbaz said that local government elections would be held alongside the general elections, in line with legal provisions requiring polls to be conducted within 60 days of the assembly’s dissolution.
Responding to reports about administrative powers, he clarified that the government’s powers had not been completely frozen. “If the government files a review appeal about certain public interest projects, the Election Commission will consider it,” he said.
Meanwhile, the hearing on the government’s petition regarding limited powers was adjourned until October 31 due to the absence of government representatives.
Emphasising his impartiality, the CEC said G-B will have fair elections. To another question, he said the conduct of elections is linked with the law, not with the weather.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission of Gilgit-Baltistan (ECGB) announced November 4, 2025, as the deadline for all members of the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly to submit their statements of assets and liabilities for the fiscal year 2024-25.
In a statement, the ECGB said lawmakers must submit details of their own, their spouses’, and dependent children’s assets and liabilities as of June 30, 2025, on Form B. It said the submission was a legal requirement under Section 137 of the Elections Act, 2017.
The commission added that the declarations would be published in the official gazette under Section 138 of the same Act to ensure transparency and compliance with the law.
