Software glitch delays Pakistan general elections results

— By | Jul 26, 2018 06:17 am

Islamabad : Pakistani election staff empty the ballot boxes to start counting following polls closed at a polling station for the parliamentary elections in Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, July 25, 2018. After an acrimonious campaign, polls opened in Pakistan on Wednesday to elect the country's third straight civilian government, a first for this majority Muslim nation that has been directly or indirectly ruled by its military for most of its 71-year history.AP/PTI(AP7_25_2018_000258B)

Lahore [Pakistan]: The Election Commission of Pakistan on Thursday said that results of the general elections have been delayed due to a software error. Addressing a press conference, ECP Secretary Babar Yaqoob said official results are being compiled.

“Result Transmission Service (RTS) software stopped working under pressure, which has caused a delay in results. Presiding officers have been asked to meet their returning officers, along with army officers assigned to their voting booths for their security, with the results,” he said. However, Yaqoob said the condition of the system has gotten better, adding that results would be announced shortly. Earlier, the ECP was accused of conducting rigged elections due to non-provision of Form 45, a sheet containing the final vote tally at each polling station. The ECP, however, refuted the same. On a related note, the counting of votes is currently underway.