With only six days left in general election 2024, electioneering reached to its peak in all seven merged tribal districts (erstwhile Fata) where candidates started approaching large tribes seeking their support besides busy in election rallies and door to door meetings to attract voters.
From South Waziristan to Bajaur and Khyber to North Waziristan tribal districts, the candidates of different political parties and their supporters were gearing up to elect their representatives for national and KP assemblies for next five years on February 8, 2024.
Tribal people started gearing up for another historic moment to poll their votes for the first time in their history for both National Assembly and KP legislature seats taking place simultaneously at South Waziristan, North Waziristan, Kurram, Khyber, Orakzai, Mohmand and Bajaur tribal districts on February 8, 2024.
“I am eagerly awaiting for the February 8 election to cast my first vote,”said Asghar Afridi, a voter of tehsil Bara Khyber tribal district. Besides his area’s people, he said they would go in groups to polling stations along with families and friends to fulfil the national obligations. Like Asghar, great enthusiasm is being witnessed among voters in these tribal districts.
The earlier election milestone had been achieved in 2019, when 16 seats of the tribal districts in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly were contested for the first time following their merger with the province.
The inaugural elections for the provincial assembly seats from the merged districts took place on July 18, 2019- a year after the general polls of July 25, 2018. Bajaur had two NA seats in the 2018 general elections that had now been reduced to one following the delimitation of constituencies last year.
