State of Southasia #02: Ayesha Siddiqa on Pakistan’s stormy election and its message for the military

On 9 March, Asif Ali Zardari of the Pakistan’s People’s Party (PPP) was elected as Pakistan’s 14th president – the only person ever to be elected as the country’s head of state for a second time. Earlier in the week, Shebaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) took oath as prime minister, also for the second time. An eight-party coalition headed by the PML-N with support from the PPP formed the new government, despite candidates from Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf winning the most number of seats in the 8 February election. The new government has been dubbed as “coalition of losers” by supporters of the PTI, who have alleged large-scale manipulation cutting into the party’s electoral gains.