The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has suspended all steps taken so far to hold local government elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, after a federal government order suspended Article 140-A of the Constitution across the whole province.

The commission met on Thursday 5 November under Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja and reviewed federal government Order No. 3, dated 4 November. Clause 2 of the order extends the suspension of Article 140-A — which provides for the establishment of local governments in the provinces — to all districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, beyond those already covered under an earlier order. The ECP said holding elections in the remaining districts had therefore become impossible, and all preparations are suspended until further orders.

A reversal of the 29 October order

The decision reverses the ECP's order of 29 October, when it directed that local government elections be held immediately in districts where delimitation had been completed, excluding 12 districts facing security challenges and emergency measures. Elections were not to be scheduled in Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Mohmand, Orakzai and North Waziristan under the federal order of 11 October, when the province was placed under governor's rule and emergency after the federal government cited the provincial government's disengagement from the fight against terrorism.

The ECP noted that conducting local government elections is its constitutional responsibility under Article 140-A(2), and said it remains committed to that mandate despite the current administrative hurdles. Local government elections in the province have been pending since the terms of existing local bodies expired, the first phase in March 2026 and the second in June 2026. Separately, the ECP announced that the first phase of local government elections in Punjab will be held on 7 February 2027.

Sources: APP via Tez Khabar, ECP suspends all steps for KP local government elections, 5 November 2026; Islamabad Post, ECP sets Feb 7 for first phase of Punjab LG elections, halts polls in KP, 5 November 2026.