Three weeks following the national vote on February 8, Pakistan's parliament elected Shehbaz Sharif as the country's 24th prime minister for his second term. Shehbaz, the younger brother of Nawaz Sharif, a three-time Prime Minister and the president of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), secured 201 votes in the National Assembly's lower house, surpassing the 169 votes needed for a simple majority by 32 votes. His main competitor, Omer Ayub Khan from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the party of the jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, received 92 votes. Shehbaz's victory was supported by the center-left Pakistan People's Party and various regional parties. However, the Jamiat Ulema Islam, a significant religiopolitical party led by former opposition leader Maulana Fazl-ur-Rahman, and a lawmaker from southwestern Balochistan province abstained from voting. Shehbaz Sharif is slated to take the oath of office on Monday. During the announcement of the results by Speaker Ayaz Sadiq, PML(N) lawmakers celebrated by thumping desks and chanting "Sher, Sher" (lion, lion), the party's election symbol. In contrast, PTI lawmakers protested by gathering in front of the speaker's desk, holding portraits of Imran Khan, and chanting slogans against the newly elected prime minister and the ruling coalition throughout his inaugural speech. The elections on February 8 were overshadowed by violence and allegations of rigging. Despite PTI-backed independents winning more seats, their failure to form an alliance allowed the PML(N)-led coalition to establish the government for the next five years.
