cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the chief executive
elections: president elected by Parliament for a five-year term; election last held 31 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by the National Assembly; election last held 3 February 1997 (next to be held NA); note - Gen. Pervez MUSHARRAF overthrew the government of Prime Minister Mohammad Nawaz SHARIF in the military takeover of 12 October 1999; in May 2000, the Supreme Court validated the October 1999 coup and set a three-year limit in office for Chief Executive MUSHARRAF
election results: Rafiq TARAR elected president; percent of Parliament and provincial vote - NA%; results are for the last election for prime minister prior to the military takeover of 12 October 1999 - Mohammad Nawaz SHARIF elected prime minister; percent of National Assembly vote - NA%
Legislative branch: note - Gen. Pervez MUSHARRAF dissolved Parliament following the military takeover of 12 October 1999; bicameral Parliament or Majlis-e-Shoora consists of the Senate (87 seats; members indirectly elected by provincial assemblies to serve six-year terms; one-third of the members up for election every two years) and the National Assembly (217 seats - 10 represent non-Muslims; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 12 March 1997 (next to be held NA); National Assembly - last held 3 February 1997 (next to be held NA); note - no timetable has yet been given for elections following the military takeover
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PML/N 30, PPP 17, ANP 7, MQM/A 6, JWP 5, BNP 4, JUI/F 2, PML/J 2, BNM/M 1, PKMAP 1, TJP 1, independents 6, vacant 5; National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PML/N 137, PPP 18, MQM/A 12, ANP 10, BNP 3, JWP 2, JUI/F 2, PPP/SB 1, NPP 1, independents 21, minorities 10; note - Gen. Pervez MUSHARRAF dismissed Parliament 15 October 1999
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (justices appointed by the president); Federal Islamic or Shari'a Court
Political parties and leaders: note: Gen. Pervez MUSHARRAF
dissolved Parliament following the military takeover of 12 October
1999, however, political parties have been allowed to operate; Awami
National Party or ANP [Wali KHAN]; Balochistan National
Movement/Hayee Group or BNM/H [Dr. HAYEE Baluch]; Baluch National
Party or BNP [Sardar Akhtar MENGAL]; Jamhoori Watan Party or JWP
[Akbar Khan BUGTI]; Jamiat-al-Hadith or JAH [Sajid MIR]; Jamiat
Ulema-i-Islam, Fazlur Rehman faction or JUI/F [Fazlur REHMAN];
Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan, Niazi faction or JUP/NI [Abdul Sattar Khan
NIAZI]; Millat Party [Farooq LEGHARI]; Milli Yakjheti Council or MYC
is an umbrella organization which includes Jamaat-i-Islami or JI
[Qazi Hussain AHMED], Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, Sami-ul-Haq faction or
JUI/S [Sami ul-HAQ], Tehrik-I-Jafria Pakistan or TJP [Allama Sajid
NAQVI], and Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan, Noorani faction or JUP/NO [Shah
Ahmad NOORANI]; Mutahida Qaumi Movement, Altaf faction or MQM/A
[Altaf HUSSAIN]; National People's Party or NPP [Ghulam Mustapha
JATOI]; Pakhtun Khwa Milli Awami Party or PKMAP [Mahmood Khan
ACHAKZAI]; Pakhtun Quami Party or PQP [Mohammed AFZAL Khan];
Pakistan Awami Tehrik or PAT [Tahir ul QADRI]; Pakistan Muslim
League, Functional Group or PML/F [Pir PAGARO]; Pakistan Muslim
League, Junejo faction or PML/J [Hamid Nasir CHATTHA]; Pakistan
Muslim League, Nawaz Sharif faction or PML/N [Nawaz SHARIF];
Pakistan National Party or PNP [Hasil BIZENJO]; Pakistan People's
Party or PPP [Benazir BHUTTO]; Pakistan People's Party/Shaheed
Bhutto or PPP/SB [Ghinva BHUTTO]; Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf or PTI
[Imran KHAN]
note: political alliances in Pakistan can shift frequently
Political pressure groups and leaders: military remains important political force; ulema (clergy), landowners, industrialists, and small merchants also influential