Pakistan's Parliament Elects Imran Khan as Prime Minister

On Friday, August 26, Pakistan's Parliament elected Imran Khan, the former cricket champion, as the Prime Minister of the country and tasked him with forming a coalition government to rescue Pakistan from its economic crisis. During the campaign, Khan criticized the 'liberals' in Pakistan and aligned himself with conservative and religious groups. The 65-year-old Khan, whose party won the recent parliamentary elections, promised to fight corruption and lift millions of his countrymen out of poverty. His victory ended decades of political dominance by the two major parties, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the Pakistan People's Party. Since its independence in 1947, Pakistan has experienced numerous military coups and significant economic fluctuations, with alternating contractionary and expansionary economic policies. The violence from militant groups has also affected Pakistan over the years. Khan, who identifies as a staunch nationalist, has pledged to create millions of jobs, build modern hospitals, and reform the country's education system. Asad Qaiser, the Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan, announced that Khan won with 176 votes against 96 votes for his rival, Shahbaz Sharif from the 'Muslim League, Nawaz branch.' A sign of deep political division in Pakistan is that after Khan's victory in Parliament, several opposition members heckled him and called him a 'thief.' Khan's party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, secured 151 out of 342 seats in the National Assembly, achieving a fragile majority, but it was expected from the outset that he would need to form a coalition with smaller parties. Khan is set to take the oath of office as Prime Minister of Pakistan tomorrow, Saturday, but he has not yet announced his cabinet.