Securing the required number of votes in Pakistan’s upper chamber, the Senate, for a proposed constitutional modification is a formidable task for the ruling coalition.
For the amendment to pass, the government needs 64 votes. Only 54 votes are held by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) under their current coalition. The approval of the amendment depends on the backing of independent senators and the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazl) (JUI-F).
The composition of the Senate as of right now demonstrates:
Coalition Government:
24 senators from the PPP, 19 from the PML-N, 4 from the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), and 3 from the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). There are now 54 senators after the addition of 2 independents.
