The 1997 National Assembly election saw a sharp deterioration in ballot validity: 450,538 votes were rejected out of 19,693,908 polled, a rate of 2.29% — nearly one percentage point higher than in 1993. The nationwide total across all assemblies rose to 898,541, an 85% increase in absolute terms over 1993. Balochistan’s rejection rate crossed four percent for the first time in this dataset, reaching 4.05%. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recorded 2.49% and Punjab 2.35%, while Sindh was the lowest at 1.91%.
Election Context: 1997
Pakistan’s 1997 general elections were held on 3 February 1997 following the second dismissal of Benazir Bhutto’s government. The elections produced a landslide for the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), which secured a two-thirds majority in the National Assembly. Official turnout was among the lowest recorded in Pakistani electoral history, at approximately 35% nationally. The sharp rise in rejection rates across all provinces compared to 1993 is documented in FAFEN’s compiled dataset and warrants further administrative review.
Breakdown — Rejected Ballots
| Assembly | Rejected Ballots | Rejection Rate |
| National Assembly Election | 450,538 | 2.29% |
| Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Election | 49,384 | 2.49% |
| Punjab Assembly Election | 298,932 | 2.35% |
| Sindh Assembly Election | 71,288 | 1.91% |
| Balochistan Assembly Election | 28,399 | 4.05% |
Source: TDEA–FAFEN compiled dataset from Election Commission of Pakistan records.
What Is a Rejected Ballot?
A rejected ballot is a ballot paper excluded from the vote count. Polling staff identify and set aside such ballots during the counting process at the polling station. The Returning Officer (RO) then reviews these determinations during the consolidation of results, and the ballot is formally rejected only after that scrutiny. Pakistani electoral procedure specifies four grounds for rejection: the ballot does not bear the presiding officer’s official stamp and signature; it carries any mark or writing beyond the Assistant Presiding Officer’s (APO) official seal and signature; an extraneous paper or material is attached to it; or the voting mark falls simultaneously in the boxes of two candidates in a way that makes it impossible to determine which candidate the voter intended to select.
Rejection does not automatically indicate fraud or deliberate misconduct. Voter error — including accidental double-marking or stamps placed outside the designated box — accounts for a documented share of rejections in every election.
