Islamabad Delimitation for Local Government Elections Begins; ECP Urges Swift Legislation in Punjab and KP

ISLAMABAD, July 31: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday announced significant progress in preparations for local government elections in the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), Punjab, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while emphasizing that timely legislative action by federal and provincial governments is essential to ensure elections are held without further delays.

According to an official statement, the delimitation process for local government elections in Islamabad will formally begin on August 1 and conclude on October 13, 2026. The ECP said training of the delimitation committees has been completed, while the Deputy Commissioner Islamabad has provided the required maps to facilitate the exercise.

The Commission also informed that it has forwarded its recommendations on the draft Local Government Conduct of Election Rules to the Ministry of Interior and the Chief Commissioner Islamabad, urging the authorities to notify the rules at the earliest so that election materials can be printed and other logistical arrangements finalized in time.

Regarding Punjab, the ECP said hearings on objections to the preliminary delimitations have been completed. Delimitation authorities will communicate their decisions to the committee by August 7, while the final delimitation list is scheduled to be published on August 17. The Commission said it will immediately begin consultations with the Punjab government to determine the election schedule, adding that it is fully prepared to conduct local government polls in the province.

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the ECP said delimitation has been completed in 23 districts, while work is continuing in the remaining seven districts. However, the process has been affected by recent amendments to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Local Government Act.

The Commission explained that an amendment introduced on July 21 revised the population limits for Village and Neighborhood Councils but left the number of seats in the Ninth Schedule unchanged, creating a legal anomaly that has made delimitation impossible in the affected districts.

The ECP said it formally informed the provincial government about the inconsistency, after which the Chief Secretary requested three weeks to amend the relevant schedule. The Commission accepted the request but reiterated that it remains fully prepared to conduct local government elections in the province once the legal issues are resolved.

The ECP recalled that under Articles 140-A and 219(d) of the Constitution, as well as Section 219 of the Elections Act, 2017, it is constitutionally bound to hold local government elections within 120 days of the expiry of local bodies’ tenure.

The Commission stated that it has repeatedly completed delimitation exercises and announced election schedules, but federal and provincial governments have often amended local government laws or altered administrative boundaries during the final stages of delimitation or after the election schedule had been issued, resulting in delays to the electoral process.

The ECP further revealed that it had proposed amendments to the federal government, recommending that no changes to local government laws or administrative boundaries be made after the expiry of local governments’ tenure. It also suggested that if governments intended to introduce a new local government system or major structural reforms, the necessary legislation should be enacted at least one year before the expiry of the existing local bodies to facilitate timely elections.

According to the Commission, these recommendations were not adopted. The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs responded that legislation is the exclusive constitutional prerogative of Parliament, although the ECP maintained that its proposals were aimed solely at enabling the Commission to fulfil its constitutional obligation of conducting local government elections on time.