Haider Hoti, Atif Khan in Pivotal Face-Off for NA-22 Mardan

APP
Mardan: Election fervor has taken hold of the Mardan district, setting the stage for a challenging electoral showdown in the national assembly constituency NA-22 Mardan-II.
The battle is anticipated between former Chief Minister of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Ameer Haider Khan Hoti, and the PTI-supported former Provincial Minister, Atif Khan.
With just one day remaining until the 2024 general elections, political parties and independent candidates have intensified their efforts, conducting rallies, corner meetings, and door-to-door campaigns to sway voters.
Utilizing social media and placing advertisements in national newspapers, candidates have accelerated their publicity strategies.
All eyes are focused on NA-22 Mardan-II, where the ANP has nominated former Chief Minister Amir Haider Khan Hoti, facing a challenge from former KP senior minister Muhammad Atif Khan, backed by the PTI.
2013 General Elections
In the 2013 general elections, Haider Hoti secured victory in the constituency with 44,769 votes, while PTI’s Nasir Khan garnered 42,068 votes. In the 2018 general elections, Haider Hoti maintained his position with 78,911 votes, narrowly defeating Atif Khan by just 35 votes.
The political adversaries are once again competing against each other, vying for the support of prominent local tribes.

In NA-21-Mardan-I, former MNA Mujahid Khan is running as an independent candidate, symbolized by a “dove.” He faces challenges from candidates representing ANP, PPP, and JUIF in the upcoming election.
In the 2013 general elections, Mujahid Khan secured 38,233 votes, defeating Imdadullah Yousafzai of JUIF with 26,625 votes, while in the 2018 general election, this constituency was again clinched by Mujahid Khan on the PTI ticket with 78,140 votes against ANP’s Gul Nawaz Khan with 38,712 votes.
In NA-23-Mardan-3, former federal minister Ali Muhammad is asserting his independence in the electoral arena, represented by the symbol “Dolphin.” Simultaneously, PTI’s former MPA Toufail Anjum is running as an independent candidate with the symbol “Pillow” on PK-55, Mardan-2.
In the 2013 election, Ali Muhammad secured victory in NA-23 on the PTI ticket with 58,577 votes, surpassing JUIF’s Maulana Muhammad Qasim, who garnered 56,318 votes and claimed the runner-up position. The constituency was later won by the PTI founder with 76,681 votes, surpassing Maulana Qasim of JUIF, who received 68,181 votes.
Registered Voters in Mardan
As per the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the overall registered voters in Mardan district amount to 1,538,078, with 696,382 being women. The district is equipped with a total of 1,055 polling stations, consisting of 353 for male voters, 319 for female voters, and 383 combined polling stations.
As many as 42 candidates, including two women, are vying for the three national assembly seats, while approximately 105 candidates, including three women, are contending for the eight provincial assembly seats in the politically dynamic Mardan district.
Dr A.H Hilali, former faculty member of the Political Science Department at the University of Peshawar, anticipates the emergence of split candidates in Mardan and highlights the pivotal role young voters will play in shaping the fortunes of ANP, JUI-F, PPP, PTI, PML-N, and other independents on February 8, 2024.
Major political parties, including PTI, PML-N, and PPP, have already unveiled election manifestos that will significantly influence the outcomes for their candidates on the election day. Dr Hilali emphasizes the mandatory participation of women in voting, as stipulated by election laws, and underscores the candidates’ need to work diligently to ensure voter turnout at polling stations on February 8, 2024.
Muhammad Ishaq, a resident of Moti Banda Mardan, highlighted that significant challenges such as unemployment, inadequate sanitation, and poverty need urgent attention. He emphasized that voters would favor candidates with robust programs addressing these issues.
According to him, resolving challenges like unemployment and poverty requires initiatives such as ensuring clean drinking water and providing loans to farmers for agricultural and livestock development, leading to increased employment opportunities in rural areas.
Additionally, he called for the connectivity of Tehsil Katlang villages to the Swat Motorway. Furthermore, Ishaq advocated for the construction of a technical vocational institute to skill the local youth for overseas employment opportunities and promote industrialization in the area