PTI made mistakes, selected wrong candidate, says PM on KPK LG elections

Prime Minister Imran Khan has admitted that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) made mistakes in the first phase of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) local government elections, saying that he will personally be overseeing the second phase of the polls.

In a tweet on Tuesday, the PM said that due to the wrong selection of candidate the PTI paid the price.

"From now on I will personally be overseeing PTI's LG election strategy in 2nd phase of KP LG elections & LG elections across Pak. InshaAllah PTI will come out stronger," he tweeted.

The PM's statement comes after the PTI lost ground as Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) was leading on many fronts, including the one for the coveted post of Peshawar mayor.

As per unofficial results, opposition parties have a combined lead over the ruling PTI in the first local government elections held in KPK since the merger of tribal districts

JUI-F's candidate Zubair Ali took the lead over the ruling party for the Peshawar mayoral slot on Monday. In the ongoing counting of votes, JUI-F candidate Zubair Ali is believed to be most likely to beat Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s Rizwan Khan Bangash.

PTI lags behind JUI-F in KP LG elections

In the 64 tehsil councils unofficial results obtained so far, the JUI-F has emerged victorious in 10 tehsil councils while the PTI has won in 9.

Unofficial results further confirm that the Jamaat-e-Islami has won a single seat in the tehsil council elections as well.

In Bannu, JUI-F candidate Irfanullah Durrani has extended a lead over a PTI candidate for the mayor election.

Moreover, the PTI has tasted defeat in Mardan, Kohat and Nowshera tehsils. For the Mardan city mayor election, the Awami National Party’s (ANP) Himayat Ullah Mayar has defeated the PTI’s candidate to emerge the victor, as per unofficial results.