The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), former Justice Qazi Muhammad Farooq who announced the result of presidential election later in the evening said Asif Ali Zardari has been declared by the ECP as successful candidate for the office of the President. He has secured 481 votes while his two rival candidates Saeed-uz-Zaman Siddqui and Mushahid Hussain Sayed have secured 153 and 44 votes respectively from the Electoral College of 702.
He said that the ECP has received results from all provinces and the final figures have been calculated according to the method prescribed in the constitution. However, the ECP did not release province-wise details of the votes bagged by each candidate.
When contacted Secretary Election Commission, Kanwar Muhammad Dilshad told Business Recorder that Asif Ali Zardari bagged 281 votes while Saeed-uz-Zaman Siddiqui of PML-N got 111 and Senator Mushahid Hussain secured 34 votes out of total 426 polled votes from 442 members of Upper and Lower Houses.
Giving details of provinces, he said that Asif Ali Zardari bagged 22 votes in the Punjab Assembly after Saeed-uz-Zaman Siddiqui who won majority 35 votes in the Province. Mushahid Hussain got only 6 votes from Punjab Assembly. In Sindh, he said Asif Ali Zardari won 63 votes while his opponent failed to get even a single vote.
Dilsahd said that Zardari has bagged 56 votes from NWFP Assembly followed by Saeed-uz-Zaman Siddiqui of PML-N 5 and Mushahid Hussain Sayed of PML-Q 2. The PPP co-chairman has bagged 59 votes from Balochistan Assembly while his rival candidates Siddiqui and Mushahid got only 2 votes each. Thus Zardari got 481 votes from the Electoral College of 702 comprising of Senate, National Assembly and all the four Provincial Assemblies with 342, 100 and 65 electoral votes respectively.
Earlier, when the results were announced in the National Assembly, the Hall echoed with the pro-Bhutto slogans of 'Jiye Bhutto' and 'Zinda Hai BiBi Zinda Hai'. The PML-N also retaliated with the slogans like 'Nawaz Tere Janisar Beshumar Beshumar'.
Inside the National Assembly, general atmosphere was very festive. JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman entered the Hall in a very pleasant mood embarrassing the former Senate chairman Waseem Sajjad and other PPP stalwarts. MQM lawmakers took photographs with Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and NA Speaker Fehmida Mirza after casting their votes to show solidarity with them. Prime Minister Gilani kept signing applications presented by the MPs, which Business Recorder learnt were personal recommendations for jobs, licenses, and permits, etc.
Towards the close of voting, Benazir Bhutto's elder daughter, Bakhtawar, entered the Assembly Hall and the pro-Zardari lawmakers went to her in the visitor's gallery singly to show solidarity. Bakhtawar requested the security people to provide her with a photograph of her mother, Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, which she held in her hands till the announcement of the final results declaring Asif Ali Zardari as the next President of Pakistan.