*ISLAMABAD – The people of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa showed the door to the chiefsof six mainstream political parties.*

PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif, MMAPresident Maulana Fazlur Rehman, JI Ameer Sirajul Haq, ANP chief AsfandyarWali Khan and Qaumi Watan Party Chairperson Aftab Sherpao suffered a majorsetback in the northwestern province as people chose to vote against them.

Voters say that all these leaders would vacate their Khyber-Pakhtunkhwaseats and prefer retaining seats in their hometown constituencies.

Wali was facing Maulana Gohar Shah of the MMA and PTI’s Fazal Mohammad Khanin NA-24. He had lost to Maulana Gohar Shah in the 2013 election. Thistime, he has lost the seat to PTI’s Fazal Mohammad Khan.

Similarly, Shehbaz suffered defeat at the hands of PTI’s Saleemur Rehman inSwat’s NA-3. The MMA had withdrawn its candidate, Maulana Hujjatullah, infavour of the PML-N president. Hujjatullah refused to leave his candidacyand contested as an independent candidate.

In Malakand’s NA-8, the PPP’s young chief lost in his first election anddefeated by the PTI’s Junaid Akbar. Malakand was once a PPP stronghold. Thenumber of national and provincial assembly seats of the party has fallen inthe area over the past few years.

PTI’s Yaqoob Sheikh defeated MMA chief Rehman in his hometown of DeraIsmail Khan.

Similarly, PTI’s Bashir Khan won against JI chief Haq in his native LowerDir district. Upper Dir and Lower Dir districts have had been JIstrongholds for a long time. Haq has served as a senator and twice as asenior minister in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government.

In Charsadda’s NA-23, Qaumi Watan Party’s Sherpao has been winning since1988. He has served the provincial chief minister as well as a member ofthe federal cabinet in the past but this year, the PTI’s Anwar Taj defeatedhim.