In pictures: Undeterred by violence, Pakistanis make their votes count

Several of Pakistan’s nearly 106 million registered voters stepped out to cast their ballot

By
Web Desk

Updated Wednesday Jul 25 2018

Pakistan voted on Wednesday for the country’s second consecutive democratic transfer of power.

Polling began at 8AM across the country's 85,307 polling stations and continued until 6PM despite calls by several major parties, including PML-N, PPP and PTI, to extend the polling time by an hour.

The parties had complained of “a slow voting process” and thus sought more time to facilitate voters — a request that was dismissed by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

The election campaign was marred by violence with three candidates killed in targetted attacks and culminated with a suicide blast outside a polling station in Quetta which claimed at least 30 lives.

However, undeterred, several of Pakistan’s nearly 106 million registered voters stepped out to cast their ballot, including women in areas where they previously stood disenfranchised due to various issues.

A voter displays her inked thumb during the general election in Karachi, Pakistan, July 25, 2018. Photo: REUTERS
 
A Pakistani woman walks out of a polling station holding Pakistan´s national floag after casting her ballot during general elections, in Rawalpindi on July 25, 2018. Photo: AFP 
Michael Gahler, Chief Observer of the European Union Election Mission to Pakistan, visits a polling station during general election in Islamabad, Pakistan July 25, 2018. Photo: REUTERS 
A Pakistani man helps his blind father to casts his vote at a polling station during Pakistan´s general election in Islamabad on July 25, 2018. Photo: AFP 
Presiding officer marking thumb of women who case her cas her vote during Pakistan's General Election. Photo: Online
A voter walks next to a police officer as she prepares to cast her vote during the general election in Karachi, Pakistan, July 25, 2018. Photo: REUTERS
A burqa-clad woman casts her vote during Pakistan´s general election at a polling station during the general election in Pehawar on July 25, 2018. Photo: AFP 


Pakistan´s cricketer-turned politician Imran Khan (C) of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (Movement for Justice) speaks to the media after casting his vote at a polling station during the general election in Islamabad on July 25, 2018. Photo: AFP


A woman casts her ballot at a polling station during general election in Rawalpindi, Pakistan July 25, 2018. Photo: REUTERS 
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Pakistani security personnel gather at the site of a suicide attack near a polling station in Quetta on July 25, 2018. At least 30 people were killed and dozens more wounded in a suicide attack on a polling station in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta, officials said, as millions voted in a nationwide election on July 25. Photo: AFP


Shahbaz Sharif (C), the younger brother of ousted Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the head of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), shows his ballot papers as he casts his vote during Pakistan´s general election at a polling station in Lahore on July 25, 2018. Photo: AFP 
A election official man checks an ID of a voter during Pakistan´s general election at a polling station in Lahore on July 25, 2018. Photo: AFP 
Voters are getting ballot papers for casting their vote at a polling station during General Election 2018 in Peshawar. Photo: PPI 
People showing their CNICs while standing in queue to cast their vote during Pakistan's General Election. Photo: online