The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has strengthened its position in the first phase of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) general elections 2026, winning five of the eight constituencies for which complete unofficial and provisional results have been announced in Mirpur Division.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has secured the remaining three seats, while vote counting continues in the other five constituencies.
PML-N wins five seats
According to complete unofficial and provisional results:
LA-1 Mirpur-I
PML-N candidate Azhar Sadiq won the seat with 15,427 votes, defeating PPP's Muhammad Afser Shahid, who secured 9,832 votes.
LA-4 Mirpur
PML-N's Chaudhry Rukhsar emerged victorious with 20,172 votes, while PPP's Sohaib Arshad finished second with 13,865 votes.
LA-5 Barnala
PML-N candidate Waqar Ahmad Noor won the constituency. Earlier unofficial counting from 133 of 176 polling stations had already placed him in a commanding position before he secured victory.
LA-7 Bhimber
PML-N's Chaudhry Tariq Farooq won the constituency with 35,287 votes, defeating independent candidate Chaudhry Anwarul Haq, who received 24,997 votes.
LA-9 Kotli-II
PML-N candidate Umair Naeem claimed victory with 31,080 votes, while PPP's Javed Iqbal Budhanvi finished second with 28,509 votes.
PPP bags three seats
LA-2
PPP's Qasim Majeed won the constituency with 12,952 votes, defeating PML-N candidate Azeem Bakhsh, who secured 8,256 votes.
LA-3 Mirpur City
PPP candidate Yasir Sultan secured victory after receiving 11,676 votes from all 161 polling stations, while PML-N's Chaudhry Saeed polled 9,832 votes.
LA-10 Kotli
PPP's Chaudhry Yasin won the constituency, defeating PML-N's Fateh Mahmood Hassan after overtaking him during the final stages of vote counting.
Counting continues in remaining constituencies
Unofficial counting is still underway in the remaining five constituencies.
LA-6 Kotli-I
Results from 113 of 195 polling stations show PML-N's Abdul Razzaq leading with 23,923 votes, followed by Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) candidate Ali Shan with 12,492 votes.
LA-8 Kotli
Results from 31 of 155 polling stations place PPP's Zafar Iqbal ahead with 4,851 votes, while PML-N's Malik Nawaz has 3,615 votes.
LA-11
Vote counting is continuing, with the Election Commission yet to announce comprehensive unofficial figures.
LA-12
Results from 50 of 207 polling stations show PPP's Chaudhry Yasin leading with 9,788 votes, while PML-N's Raja Riasat has secured 6,768 votes.
LA-13 Khoi Ratta
Results from 67 of 193 polling stations place PML-N's Ayaz Ahmad ahead with 10,389 votes, followed by IPP candidate Ansar Abdali with 8,094 votes, while PPP's Waleed Inqalabi is in third place.
Polling extended after high turnout
Earlier, the Chief Election Commissioner extended polling across all 13 constituencies of Mirpur Division from 5pm to 6pm due to an exceptionally high voter turnout.
Voters already inside polling stations or waiting in queues before the deadline were allowed to cast their ballots.
The election process remained peaceful under tight security provided by police, law enforcement agencies and Pakistan Army personnel.
Mirpur Division has 1.44 million registered voters, including 724,811 men and 675,626 women.
A total of 2,316 polling stations were established, including 1,241 highly sensitive, 724 sensitive and 351 normal polling stations.
Overall, 288 candidates contested elections across 13 constituencies, with LA-3 Mirpur City recording the highest number of contestants at 34.
Chief Election Commissioner Justice (retd) Ghulam Mustafa Mughal praised the peaceful conduct of polling and urged voters to ignore rumours while exercising their democratic right.
More unofficial and provisional results are expected as vote counting continues across the remaining constituencies of Mirpur Division.
