Why would someone who hadn't voted for the PTI in 2013 vote for the party now?

The PTI's strategy for the polls has been to recruit and hand out tickets to electables. But there's been a lot of grumbling ─ both among party workers and the existing voter base ─ about the induction of old faces in a party that's branded itself on being fresh, young and new ─ an antidote to the politics of old, if you will.

The PTI has attempted to justify its decision by claiming it'll be able to keep a leash on the electables without compromising on its core values ─ but is this even possible?

Cyril Almeida in his op-ed today points out although these electables may bring in votes, they may also affect lower turnout in the PTI's existing base of votes.

Will the additional votes be enough for them to pass the estimated 10 million vote margin for the party to come out on top in 2018? It's still at least 2 million votes more than the PTI managed in 2013.

The party will also have to compete with the PML-N and the PPP, although the latter doesn't seem to be much competition at this point, while the former has yet to build up momentum in its own election campaign.

Cyril has some advice for the PTI:

To be a winner, you have to look like a winner... It (the PTI) needs to start looking like a winner — discipline, focus and staying on message — rather than Imran acting like he’s already won.

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