Battlegrounds to watch: Swings, strongholds or shocks?

As election campaigning comes to a close, and Pakistanis gear up to head to the polls in a few hours, here is a look at 23 national assembly constituencies that will be hosting the most high-profile face-offs:

NA-25 (Nowshera)

Former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister Pervez Khattak is contesting on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf in the constituency.

He will face a tough competition from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s Siraj Muhammad Khan and Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal’s Zulfiqar Ali Shah.

The area has a total population of 748,777 with 373,714 registered voters.  

NA-35 (Bannu)

PTI chairperson Imran Khan Niazi is competing against MMA’s Akram Khan Durrani and PPPP’s Yasmeen Safdar in the NA-35 constituency of Bannu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 578,872.

NA-38 (Dera Ismail Khan)

MMA's Fazalur Rehman is contesting against PTI’s Ali Ameen Khan Gandapur and PPPP’s Faisal Karim Kundi for the NA-38 constituency of Dera Ismail Khan. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 391,557. 

NA-53 (Islamabad)

Islamabad's NA-53 constituency will witness a tough battle between former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, who is contesting on PML-N's ticket, PTI chief Imran Khan and PPPP’s Sibt ul Haider Bukhari.

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 670,683.

NA-59 (Rawalpindi)

Former interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Khan is contesting from the said constituency on an independent ticket. 

His competitors include PTI’s Ghulam Sarwar Khan and PML-N’s Raja Qamarul Islam. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 357,199. 

NA-69 (Gujrat)

The candidates contesting from the NA-69 constituency of Gujrat include PML-N’s Chaudhry Mubashir Hussain, PML-Q’s Pervaiz Elahi and PPPP’s Wazirun Nissa. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 467,378.

NA-127 (Lahore)

The candidates contesting from the NA-127 constituency of Lahore include PML-N’s Ali Pervaiz and PTI’s Jamshed Iqbal Cheema. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 417,706. 

NA-129 (Lahore)

Former National Assembly speaker Ayaz Sadiq is contesting elections from the said constituency on PML-N's ticket. 

He will face a tough competition from PTI’s Abdul Aleem Khan. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 404,802. 

NA-125 (Lahore)

PTI's Yasmeen Raashid is going up against PML-N’s Waheed Alam Khan to win the NA-125 constituency of Lahore. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 485,624. 

NA-131 (Lahore)

The NA-131 constituency of Lahore will witness a showdown between PTI chief Imran Khan and PML-N’s Khawaja Saad Rafique. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 364,213. 

NA-145 (Pakpattan)

The candidates contesting from the NA-145 constituency of Pakpattan include PML-N’s Ahmed Raza Maneka and PTI’s Shah Khagga. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 501,250.

NA-156 (Multan)

PTI's Shah Mehmood Qureshi is contesting against PML-N’s Amir Saeed Ansari in the 156 constituency of Multan. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 444,724. 

NA-158 (Multan)

The candidates contesting from the NA-158 constituency of Multan include PML-N’s Jawaid Ali Shah, PTI’s Ibrahim Khan and PPPP’s Yousaf Raza Gilani. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 436,391.

NA-177 (Rahim Yar Khan)

The candidates contesting from the NA-177 constituency of Rahim Yar Khan include PML-N’s Makhdoom Moin Uddin, PTI’s Khusru Bakhtiyar and PPPP’s Shahab Uddin. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 409,141. 

NA-213 (Shaheed Benazirabad)

PPP co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari is competing against MQM-Pakistan’s Abdul Rauf Siddiqui, Grand Democratic Alliance's Sardar Shair Muhammad Rind and Pak Sarzameen Party's Kazim Ai Shah is the NA-213 constituency of Shaheed Benazirabad. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 418,775. 

NA-230 (Badin)

The candidates contesting from the NA-230 constituency of Badin include PPPP’s Rasul Bux Chandio and GDA's Dr Fehmida Mirza. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 371,879. 

NA-243 (Karachi)

The candidates contesting from the NA-243 constituency of Karachi include PML-N’s Shahjahan, PTI’s Imran Khan, PPPP’s Shehla Raza, MQM-Pakistan’s Ali Raza Abidi and PSP’s Muzammil Qureshi. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 401,833. 

NA-244 (Karachi)

The candidates contesting from the NA-244 constituency of Karachi include PML-N’s Miftah Ismail Ahmed, PTI’s Ali Haider Zaidi, MQM-Pakistan’s Abdul Rauf Siddiqui, MMA’s Zahid Saeed, and PSP’s Saeed Shafiq. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 407,363. 

NA-246 (Karachi)

PPPP’s Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is contesting against PTI’s Abdul Shakoor Shaad and PSP’s Ejaz Ahmed for the NA-246 constituency of Karachi. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 305,940.

NA-247 (Karachi)

The candidates battling for the said constituency include PTI’s Arif Alvi, PPPP’s Aziz Memon, MQM-Pakistan’s Farooq Sattar, PSP’s Fauzia Kasuri, and independent candidate Jibran Nasir. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 543,964. 

NA-249 (Karachi)

PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif is competing against PTI’s Faisal Vawda, MMA’s Atta Ullah Shah and MQM-Pakistan’s Aslam Shah in the NA-249 constituency of Karachi. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 324,461. 

NA- 253 (Karachi)

The said constituency will witness a showdown between former Karachi mayor and chairperson of PSP Mustafa Kamal, PTI’s Ashraf Jabbar, PPPP’s Javed Ishaq and MQM-P’s Usama Qadri. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 404,053.

NA-263 (Killa Abdullah)

The candidates battling for the NA-263 constituency pf Killa Abdullah include BAP’s Muhammad Sadiq, PkMAP’s Mehmood Khan Achakzai and PPP’s Bismillah Khan Kakar. 

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 232,023.