Elections were held on 12 November 2009 in the province of Gilgit-Baltistan for the first time to elect the first Assembly of Gilgit-Baltistan.

Background

The region of

Gilgit-Baltistan Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative units of Pakistan, administrative territory and consists of the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region, which has b ...

was formerly known as Northern Areas. The Northern Areas were formed by joining

Gilgit Agency The Gilgit Agency () was an agency within the British Indian Empire. It encompassed Hunza, Nagar and the governorships of Yasin, Koh Ghizer, Ishkoman, Punial and the tribal areas of Gor, Darel, Tangir, the district of Chilas and the Gilgit teh ...

and

Baltistan Baltistan (); also known as Baltiyul or Little Tibet, is a mountainous region in the Pakistani-administered territory of Gilgit-Baltistan and constitutes a northern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a dispute bet ...

regions in 1970 but the Northern Areas were ruled directly from

Islamabad Islamabad (; , ; ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's tenth-most populous city with a population of over 1.1 million and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital Territory. Bu ...

. In 2009 the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan () (abbreviated as GoP), constitutionally known as the Federal Government, commonly known as the Centre, is the national authority of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a federal republic located in South Asia, con ...

passed an Autonomy Order known as Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-governance Order, 2009 which was signed by the

President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan () is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The president is the nominal head of the executive and the supreme commander of the Pakistan Armed Forces.

Asif Ali Zardari Asif Ali Zardari (born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician serving as the 14th president of Pakistan since 2024, having held the same office from 2008 to 2013. He is the president of Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians and was the ...

in September 2009.

Parties and Candidates

264 candidates out of which 99 from 10 different political parties and 165 independent candidates contested for 24 seats across Gilgit-Baltistan.

Campaign and Polling

Voting took place on 12 November 2009 on Morning 9 AM to 4 PM without any break. 1022 polling stations were set up across Gilgit-Baltistan out of which 200 polling stations were considered sensitive. 5000 law enforcement personnel was hired for security.

Result

The

Pakistan People's Party The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is a political party in Pakistan and one of the three major Pakistani political parties alongside the Pakistan Muslim League (N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. With a centre-left political position, it is cu ...

emerged as the largest party in the assembly by winning 20 seats out of 33. The assembly members took oath on 10 December 2009 and

Syed Mehdi Shah Syed Mehdi Shah (Urdu: ) is a Pakistani politician who is currently serving as the 8th Governor of Gilgit-Baltistan since 15 August 2022. Previously, he served as the first Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan The chief minister of Gilgit Ba ...

became the 1st

Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan The chief minister of Gilgit Baltistan is elected by the Gilgit Baltistan Assembly to serve as the head of the provincial government in Gilgit-Baltistan for a five-year term. List of chief ministers Timeline See also * Government of Gilgit ...

unopposed.

References

{{Gilgit-Baltistan elections Elections in Gilgit-Baltistan 2009 elections in Pakistan