Voting behavior in District Shangla, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: A Case Study of 2018 General Elections

Abstract

Voting behavior is a complex phenomenon that depends on various factors. The voting pattern in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is difficult to determine because various factors coexist in influencing electoral politics. This study mainly tries to analyze the voting behavior in KP in general and District Shangla as a case study. The researchers mainly focused to address the question of determinants of voting behavior, political orientation, and women turnout in the Shangla district. The researchers tested three models which are sociological, psycho-social, and rational models of voting behavior to understand the key determinants of the voting pattern in the case study. Both qualitative and quantitative methods are used order to accomplish this project. Research journals, books, reports, and newspaper data are analyzed whereas, a survey was conducted in form of a questionnaire to acquire the quantitative data. The researchers find that the psychosocial model is the most influential in determining voting behavior as most people voted based on political factors such as party affiliations and issues raised by candidates.