The Determinants of Intra-Party Elections in Pakistan: A Study of Major Political Parties

Open Access

Abstract

The study sheds light on the intra-party elections in Pakistani political parties. It is an essential measure of internal party democracy and a gateway to promote ordinary members from bottom to top in parties. However, the grass-roots members of political parties ignore in all crucial decisions making within the party. Intra-party democracy played an energetic rule in the production of new leadership through proper channels from the grass-roots level. The idea of intra-party democracy is not very easy to describe; it is significant for the stability of the political system. It trained the grass-roots workers to defend and explain the party policies in the right way. Hence, intra-party democracy provides a leading role to all the registered members to participate through the direct or indirect way in all critical decisions making. Pakistani political parties and state politics revolve around personalities and some monastic families. The mainstream political parties of Pakistan avoided an intra-party election and leading leadership dominated from the top through direct nomination on the will of the party founder/president. This paper further explores the challenges faced by a real and authentic intra-party election in Pakistani political parties that why political parties avoided an intra-party election.