Many Pakistanis were excited about Zohran Mamdani’s recent election as New York mayor, while several others closely followed the past elections of the London and Istanbul mayors. However, most Pakistanis cannot name the mayors of their own major cities, either because there are no mayors at all or because the local governments hold little relevance in the country’s political and governance landscape.

The federal capital, Islamabad, is a prime example. The city has been without an elected mayor since February 2021. In fact, since the establishment of Islamabad as the federal capital in 1967, it has had only two elected mayors, who served between 2015 and 2021. Since the term of the last local government (LG) in Islamabad Capital Territory expired on February 14, 2021, elections have repeatedly been delayed on one pretext or another.

From this day (November 13, 2025), the Election Commission has formally begun hearings on the long-pending LG elections in the capital. It, however, remains to be seen how long these proceedings take before Islamabad finally elects its new mayor.

How long have the elections been pending?

The governing law for LGs in Islamabad is the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act 2015 (hereinafter referred to as ICTLGA). Under Section 29, the term of a local government is five years from the date of its first meeting. The first meeting of the Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) was held on February 15, 2016, in which Sheikh Anser Aziz was elected mayor, who remained in office until his resignation in 2020. Upon his resignation, Adil Gillani was elected as his successor for the remaining period of the LG term.  The local government’s term ended on February 14, 2021.

According to Section 219(4) of the Elections Act, 2017, the ECP must conduct new local government elections within 120 days of a term’s expiry, meaning the elections were due by June 2021. However, more than four-and-a-half years later, the capital city remains without elected local representation.

What has been holding back ICT LG elections?

The delay in LG elections has resulted from a series of executive, legislative, and judicial hurdles, including repeated amendments, court challenges, and administrative changes.

Let us unpack the most recent issue of a pending amendment to the ICTLGA.

The current issue under ECP’s consideration is an amendment required in Section 15 of ICTLGA. The Federal Government has moved the bill to amend the Act as required by the ECP in the National Assembly. Now, the ball is in the Parliament’s court.

Why is there a need to amend ICTLGA 2015?

In August 2024, the Parliament enacted an amendment to the ICTLGA 2015, which revised Section 15 of the Act to provide for the indirect election of reserved seats in union councils and for the election of chairpersons and vice-chairpersons during the council meetings. These elections were to take place in the meetings called by the Secretary. However, the ECP asked to change these provisions in a way that empowered the Commission, instead of the Secretary, to set the Election Program for these indirect elections.

Where is this amendment currently stuck?

In response to ECP’s suggestion, the Federal Minister for Interior, Mohsin Naqvi, introduced an amendment bill titled the ICT Local Government (Amendment) Bill, 2025, in the National Assembly, proposing to introduce the changes as suggested by the ECP. The bill, however, remains pending with the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Interior and Narcotics Control. The Committee is chaired by Raja Khurram Nawaz, an Islamabad MNA who joined the ruling PML-N after returning as an independent in the General Elections 2024.

The Committee discussed the bill on October 21, 2025, and sought detailed briefings from the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and Law Division in its next meeting. Despite a subsequent committee meeting on November 4, 2025, the briefing on the local government system was not included on the agenda.

If there’s a political will, there is a way, as we have recently seen in the passage of the constitutional amendments overnight. The amendment in ICTLGA is a far less complex matter than a constitutional amendment. Yet, no timeline can be given with certainty.

FAFEN has compiled the timeline of key developments regarding LG elections in Islamabad from ECP’s official notifications and parliamentary websites. Below is the sequence of events that have transpired since 2020:

Timeline of Key Developments in ICT Local Government Elections

  • December 2020: ECP begins coordination with the federal government for the upcoming local government elections in ICT.
  • February 2021: Term of MCI expires.
  • March–April 2021: ECP publicly complains against the lack of federal cooperation for fresh delimitation.
  • May 2021: ECP issues delimitation schedule for 50 union councils under the existing ICTLGA 2015.
  • November 2021: The Federal government promulgates the Islamabad Local Government (Amendment) Ordinance 2021, completely altering the LG structure.
  • March 2022: Islamabad High Court (IHC) strikes down the Ordinance, directing elections under ICTLGA 2015.
  • June 2022: ECP issues election schedule with polling day on July 31, later postponed after federal notification increasing union councils from 50 to 101 and court directions for fresh delimitations.
  • October–December 2022: ECP announces fresh election schedule; polls postponed again after further expansion of union councils to 125.
  • May–August 2024: ECP issues new delimitation and election schedules; process halted again following fresh legislative amendments.
  • December 2024: ECP withdraws the election schedule and begins another round of delimitations, to be completed by March 2025.