LAHORE: The Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML) has named Qazi Muhammad Ibrahim Gujjar as its candidate for the NA-77 Gujranwala-I by-election. He will face PML-N’s Rashid Bashir Virk in a contest for a seat the ruling party has held for decades.
PMML Secretary General Saifullah Kasuri announced the nomination after a party meeting attended by PMML Punjab President Muhammad Sarwar Chaudhry, Gujranwala Division President Sheikh Fayyaz Ahmed and other leaders. Gujjar is expected to contest on the party’s chair symbol.
Kasuri said the party stood for national unity, public service and peace. He said Pakistan faced political disorder, corruption and insecurity, and that the PMML wanted to tackle these through parliament. He urged NA-77 voters to back Gujjar.
The by-election follows the death of PML-N MNA Chaudhry Mahmood Bashir Virk, a four-time MNA and former federal minister who held NA-77 in the 2024 general election. Polling will be held on Sunday, November 8.
The preliminary list of candidates will be published on October 1, and scrutiny will be completed by October 5. Appeals will be decided by October 15, candidates can withdraw until October 17, and election symbols will be allotted on October 19. Gujranwala Deputy Commissioner Naveed Ahmed is the district returning officer, and Additional Deputy Commissioner Sumaira Ambreen is the returning officer.
The PML-N has given its ticket to Rashid Bashir Virk, the late MNA’s son, on the direction of party leader Nawaz Sharif.
The PMML has announces Qazi Muhammad Ibrahim Gujjar is contesting; at a time when the party has been campaigning on petrol prices and delays to Punjab’s local government elections.
The full list of candidates will be clearer once the ECP publishes it on October 1.
In the 2024 general election, Mahmood Bashir Virk won the seat with 109,704 votes. Rashida Tariq, the wife of former MNA Mian Tariq Mehmood, came second with 91,825 votes. She had filed as a PTI candidate but ran as an independent after PTI lost its election symbol. PPP’s Imtiaz Safdar Warraich came third with 17,059 votes, and the PMML’s candidate with about 6,500 votes.
The constituency, formerly known as NA-97 and then NA-80 after the 2018 boundary changes, has long been a PML-N stronghold. The 2024 result showed that a PTI-backed challenger could come within about 18,000 votes, even running without the party symbol.
PML-N is the clear front-runner. It has held the seat through a four-time MNA, it controls the Punjab government, and its candidate is likely to draw a sympathy vote as the late MNA’s son. By-elections in Pakistan have historically favoured the party in power.
PTI’s vote is the biggest unknown. It came within about 18,000 votes in 2024, making it the only force in recent history to seriously challenge the PML-N here. But the party boycotted most recent by-elections, including the November 2025 polls and a Bahawalpur by-election last month. If it stays out again, the contest becomes largely one-sided, and the real question will be turnout.
PPP is weaker, but could decide the margin. Its 17,000 votes in 2024 would not win the seat on their own. In Bahawalpur last month, the PPP withdrew its candidate to back the PML-N, and a similar move here would make the ruling party even stronger.
PMML is the weakest of the named contenders on past results. It gets only about 6,500 votes in 2024, around 3 percent. Its best hope is that a PTI boycott leaves it as the main opposition name on the ballot, which could lift its share even if it cannot win.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf alleged rigging after the November 2025 by-elections, and opposition parties have raised similar complaints in other recent polls. NA-77 is likely to face the same scrutiny, especially if the main opposition stays out.
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