Pakistan is electing a new parliament. Here are the key players ahead of the vote
Associated PressFEB 2024
Internet Shut Down on Pakistan's Election Day
Image copyright: Rebecca Conway/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
It seems that former Prime Minister Sharif and his party are headed toward victory again — this time, to help fix the economic and terrorism challenges that have grown in the country since he left. While some have criticized the internet outage as a method of suppression, the bombings and shootings that occurred throughout election day have shown the necessity of measures to stop even worse attacks from hindering the people's ability to vote.
Establishment-critical narrative
The government hinted at shutting down the internet before the election, and today it did. If the fraudulent arrests, convictions, and intimidation of Khan and his party — the most popular candidates in the country — weren't enough to expose this illegitimate regime, then nothing will. The US State Department in 2022 urged Pakistan to remove Khan from office, and ever since, the military regime has used every tool it has to make sure of it.