Voters’ Behavior in Pakistan in the General Elections of 2013: A Case Study of District Peshawar

Abstract

Study Background: Electoral politics, loosely defined is a form of political participation. Political participation of citizen in multi-ethnic and multi-lingual societies such as Pakistan is influenced by a variety of voting determinants such as party loyalty / party manifesto, religion, Baradari (the caste system - brotherhood), ethnicity, and clientelism. Historically, despite Pakistan's multi-party system, electoral politics in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been dominated by a few political parties, including the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), the Pakistan Muslim League (N), the Awami National Party (ANP), and Jamiat Ulama-e-Islam (JUI). Certain families dominate these political parties, influencing elections and the political process.

Aim of the Study: However, in the general elections of 2013, a new political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), emerged as a major political party both at the Centre and in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which is a setback for the dominant political parties. Thus, this paper primarily aims to examine the determinants that affected voting behavior during 2013 general elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Methodology: For this quantitative study, a sample size of (N=664) respondents was questioned using a systematic random sampling method.

Findings: It found that party loyalty/party manifesto was pointed out with 50.8% by respondents, followed by 'Baradari' with (18.8%), 'religion' with (14.8%), 'ethnicity' with (7.1%), while clientelism with (7.1%).

Conclusion: The paper concluded that the political voting determinant played a dominant role, followed by combined role of the social determinant, while economic determinant played role to a limited extend.