In Pakistan, a Political Realignment

Pakistan's May 11 parliamentary elections show that the country's political spectrum has altered so that, at least for the foreseeable future, the main rivalry is between two right-of-center parties. Two-term former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz won a strong majority in the elections, which had the highest-ever voter turnout. The party is preparing to implement an agenda focused on economic revival but will face security challenges complicated by the fact that Sharif's main rival, Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, will be ruling the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province — a key area ravaged by Taliban insurgency. The emergence of Khan's party and the resulting shift away from the traditional rivalry between the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the left-leaning Pakistan People's Party will have numerous implications.