ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has suspended the process of holding local government elections in the remaining districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa until further orders, citing the federal government’s extension of the suspension of Article 140-A of the Constitution.
The commission said the federal government’s latest order had made it impossible to proceed with local government elections in the remaining districts of the province.
According to an ECP press release issued on November 5, 2026, the commission had earlier decided to hold local government elections in KP districts where Article 140-A had not been suspended following the imposition of governor’s rule and emergency measures. It had also initiated several preparatory steps for the electoral process.
However, the commission reviewed the matter at a meeting chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja after the federal government issued Order No. 3 on November 4, 2026.
The meeting examined Clause 2 of the order, which extended the suspension of Article 140-A beyond the districts previously specified to cover all other districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The ECP was briefed that Article 140-A of the Constitution provides for the establishment of local governments by provincial governments. Its sub-clause (2) assigns the responsibility of conducting local government elections to the Election Commission.
The commission then assessed how the extended suspension would affect the ongoing election preparations.
After detailed deliberations, it concluded that the federal government’s order had made it impossible to hold local government elections in the remaining districts of the province.
The ECP consequently decided to suspend, until further orders, all steps taken so far to conduct local government elections in the remaining districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
