Preparing for Election Day in Pakistan: What Constitutes Credibility?

This year, for the first time in Pakistan’s history, an elected government will complete its term and transfer power to a new elected administration. With Pakistanis expected to head to the polls in several months, what should we make of the electoral environment at this point? How can we evaluate the electoral process so far in terms of prospects for being credible? What needs to have happened prior to election day for the election to be considered credible? Additionally, what makes this year’s election different from the 2008 poll? What can we expect from key institutions, such as Pakistan’s Election Commission? And who and what are the wild cards?  Peter Manikas, who recently travelled to Pakistan to conduct a pre-election assessment, and Arif Rafiq will address these and other questions.