• Punjab accounts for 81.2pc of the nationwide reduction in electoral rolls between May 7 and July 2, with nine of 10 districts recording the largest declines located in province
• 99 districts lose voters, 45 register gains
• 895,000 new voters enrolled during the period
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s electoral rolls contracted by 589,458 voters between May 7 and July 2, 2026, as the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) removed a large number of deceased voters from the electoral database, more than offsetting fresh registrations during the period, it emerged on Sunday.
According to official ECP statistics analysed by Dawn, the total number of registered voters fell from 137.16 million on May 7 to 136.57m on July 2. A senior ECP official said 895,000 new voters were enrolled during the period, but the deletion of around 1.48m deceased voters resulted in a net decline of 589,458 voters nationwide.
The number of male voters dropped from 73.29m to 72.84m, a decrease of 450,962, while the number of female voters declined from 63.88m to 63.74m, down by 138,496.
The reduction narrowed the gender gap among registered voters from about 941,000 to 910,000.
Overall, 99 of the country’s 144 districts recorded a decline in registered voters, while 45 posted a net increase.
Punjab
Punjab lost 478,909 voters, with the total falling from 77.96m to 77.48m, accounting for 81.2pc of the nationwide reduction.
Nine of the 10 districts recording the largest decline were in Punjab.
Faisalabad recorded the largest decrease, with 41,264 voters removed.
It was followed by Sheikhupura, where the number of voters declined by 31,78; Gujranwala, with a drop of 30,302; and Sialkot, which lost 30,129 voters.
The number of voters in Gujrat dropped by 29,553, followed by Sargodha (26,675), Multan (26,420), Kasur (24,367) and Bahawalpur (22,259). Likewise, Khanewal saw a decline of 19,504 voters, followed by Rahim Yar Khan (18,574), Lahore (16,633), Narowal (15,914), Toba Tek Singh (15,395), Rawalpindi (13,577), Mandi Bahauddin (13,480) and Attock (11,180).
The voters in Nankana Sahib and Muzaffargarh declined by over 10,000 each. Another nine districts recorded decreases of more than 5,000 each.
They included Okara (9,784 voters), Khushab (8,226), Chakwal (7,377), Dera Ghazi Khan (6,755), Wazirabad (6,723), Rajanpur (6,621), Kot Addu (6,358), Lodhran (6,348) and Chiniot (5,396).
Sindh
Sindh recorded the second-largest provincial decline, losing 97,216 voters.
Karachi South recorded the largest decline in the province, losing 20,243 voters and becoming the only non-Punjab district among the 10 with the biggest declines.
It was followed by Karachi East, with the removal of 16,873 voters.
Keamari lost 9,983 voters, followed by Karachi West (8,394), Hyderabad (7,573), Khairpur (7,228) and Sanghar (6,240).
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recorded a comparatively small net decline of 9,046 voters, with the total falling from 23.415m to 23.406m.
However, it was the only province where more districts recorded gains than losses.
Overall, the province lost 9,046 voters, accounting for 1.53pc of the nationwide decline. While the number of male voters fell by 16,884, the number of female voters increased by 7,838.
Haripur lost 4,978 voters, followed by Abbottabad (4,182), Charsadda (3,946), Kohat (3,352), Nowshera (3,313) and Dera Ismail Khan (2,895). Other districts that lost more than 2,000 voters included Mardan, Hangu and Bannu.
Balochistan
In Balochistan, the number of voters declined by 2,226, accounting for 0.38pc of the nationwide decrease. The total fell from 5.77m to 5.76m, with the number of male voters decreasing by 6,518 while the number of female voters increased by 4,292.
Loralai and Sibi recorded declines of 1,048 and 1,025 voters, respectively.
Islamabad Capital Territory recorded a modest decline of 2,061 voters, with the total falling from 1.25m to 1.25m. Those removed from the electoral rolls included 1,118 men and 943 women.
Despite the overall decline, 45 districts recorded an increase in registered voters between May 7 and July 2.
KP led the gains, with 20 of its 36 districts adding voters. In Balochistan, 13 of the province’s 36 districts recorded increases, while nine of Sindh’s 30 districts also posted gains. In Punjab, only three of the province’s 41 districts registered an increase in voter numbers.
In KP, the largest increase was recorded in Peshawar, which added 4,835 voters.
In Balochistan, Quetta recorded the largest increase, adding 4,052 voters.
Sindh also recorded gains in nine districts. Karachi Central registered the largest increase in the province, adding 4,428 voters.
In Punjab, only three districts recorded gains. The largest was recorded in Bahawalnagar, where voters rose by 16,094. Sahiwal added 4,755 voters, while Vehari recorded an increase of 1,089.
Published in Dawn, August 3rd, 2026
