The Pakistan Muslim League’s Nawaz supremo, Nawaz Sharif, is predicted by US think tanks and media to win a fourth term as prime minister of Pakistan in the general elections of 2024. These outlets include the BBC, Guardian, and AFP.
According to The Washington Post, it would be unexpected if Nawaz Sharif were to lose the general election that Pakistanis are holding on Thursday. Nawaz Sharif will have a chance to clear his record following his fourth election and dispel the accusations that cost him the prime ministership in 2017. Nawaz Sharif, as prime minister, will have to deal with the erratic fans of Imran Khan, the previous premier.
According to US TV Bloomberg, “many of the people interviewed said they predicted a hung parliament and then a weak coalition government at a gathering of Pakistan’s business elite in Karachi last week.” Most anticipate that Sharif, or his brother Shehbaz, another former prime minister, will serve as its leader.
Two obstacles await Nawaz Sharif if he wins back the prime ministership, according to Madiha Afzal, a Brookings Institution foreign policy fellow. “Managing Pakistan’s economic problems, especially soaring inflation,” is one of them, according to her. Bloomberg continued, “The other is managing his relationship with a strengthened military.”
CNN stated that Nawaz Sharif, Khan’s longtime opponent, is unquestionably leading the race. After years in self-exile abroad, the 74-year-old former prime minister is vying for a historic fourth term as leader in what would be an incredible political return.
CNN went on, saying, “But veteran Sharif will have a serious challenge from 35-year-old Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the son of the late former leader Benazir Bhutto, who is running for prime minister for the first time.”
“Sharif has experience. China and the United States are two things he has always been quite good at balancing. According to Tim Willasey-Wilsey, a professor at King’s College London and a former top British diplomat, “He’ll want good relations with India.” However, some predicted that “an abysmally low” voter turnout might result in a PLMN triumph.
According to the AP, “He has a clear path to a fourth term in office after his convictions and prison sentences were overturned by courts following his October return to the United States.” The stage seems to be set for a reversal of events from the 2018 election, when Sharif was fighting court proceedings and Khan became prime minister. Imran Khan, his archrival and enemy, is now imprisoned. Now that Khan is in jail, experts believe Sharif will win again.
According to US think tank Brookings Institute, Nawaz Sharif and his PMLN are expected to come to power. If PTI-affiliated independents can pull off a victory, that would be a tremendous surprise and a miracle for PTI.
The US think tank went on to say that in an election that was skewed against Nawaz Sharif and in favor of Khan, PTI emerged as the winning party in 2018. That time, the roles had been reversed. It can be concluded that Nawaz Sharif won that election and Khan lost it.
The ultimate political survivor of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, has instead been given the opportunity to become prime minister and his party to seize control of the parliament with the backing of the armed forces, according to the US think tank “Council on Foreign Relations.” Sharif is a man whose ideas on policy and how he approaches the military can be described as quite flexible.
According to Sputnik, “the new leader will have to deal with an escalating terrorism problem and one of the country’s worst economic crises after the elections.” Pakistan’s foreign policy, in particular its relationships with its neighbors and international economic partners, may be impacted by these domestic challenges.
As his chief competitor, Imran Khan, is mired in criminal charges, the former prime minister seems to be expecting a coronation rather than a fierce battle, according to the Telegraph. Nawaz Sharif, the longtime titan of Pakistani politics, seems to be going through the motions as he concludes his campaign for Thursday’s general election.
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