Polling is underway for the by-elections on six general seats of the Senate, with the National Assembly, Balochistan, and Sindh assemblies serving as the polling stations. In the National Assembly, Zafar Iqbal has been appointed as the returning officer for the secret ballot voting, continuing until 4 pm. Among the key contests is the battle for the lone general seat from Islamabad, where Ilyas Mehrban of the Sunni Ittehad Council faces off against Yousuf Raza Gilani of the PPP. The six senators elected today will serve a three-year term, filling vacancies left by senators who resigned in 2021, including notable figures like Yousuf Raza Gilani, Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, and others. Balochistan sees seven contenders vying for three vacant seats, while in Sindh, four contestants backed by the Sunni Ittehad Council and the PPP compete for two general seats. The competition intensifies with candidates like Saifullah Abro and Jam Saifullah Dharejo from the PPP facing off against the Sunni Ittehad’s Shazia Sohail and Nazeerullah, highlighting the significance of each assembly member’s vote in shaping the Senate’s composition.