1960 Pakistani referendum

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Muhammad Ayub Khan

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* Early life
* Military career
* 1958 coup d'état
* Political career

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Political views

* Basic democracy

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Elections

* 1960 Pakistani referendum
* 1962 Pakistani general election
* 1965 Pakistani general election
* 1965 Pakistani presidential election

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Parties

* Convention Muslim League
* Pakistan Muslim League

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President of Pakistan

* Afghanistan–Pakistan Confederation plan
* Constitution of Pakistan of 1962
* Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
* Operation Gibraltar
* One Unit Scheme
* Mangla Dam
* 1969 East Pakistan uprising

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Bibliography

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Media related to Muhammed Ayub Khan at Wikimedia Commons

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On February 14, 1960, Pakistan held a referendum, which was President Muhammad Ayub Khan's first popular vote following the suspension of the parliamentary system in 1958.[1]

The referendum asked nearly 80,000 village councilmen, acting as an electoral college, a single question: "Do you have confidence in President Field Marshal Mohammed Ayub Khan?" A significant majority, 95.6%, voted in favor, with the ballot featuring an image of Ayub Khan in various military uniforms.[1][2][3] Those opposed had the option of selecting a blank blue space to express their lack of confidence.[1]

The referendum, while lacking in competitive elements, served to introduce the electorate to voting procedures in anticipation of a future constitutional and democratic framework.[1] The process included private voting booths, secure steel ballot boxes, and careful tallying of results.[1] Couriers employed various means of transportation to rapidly deliver the results to telegraph offices.[1]

The referendum also saw voters personalizing their ballots with Urdu or Bengali verses praising Ayub Khan, attaching donations to developmental projects favored by the president, or simply expressing personal admiration.[1] The lack of suspense regarding the outcome was highlighted by the pre-emptive publication of Ayub Khan's inaugural plans by Dawn, several days before the official vote count was confirmed.[1]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f g h "PAKISTAN: 95.6% Love Ayub". February 29, 1960 - via Time.com.
2. ^ "elec-tion-ary [Election-in-1960]". The Express Tribune. April 12, 2013.
3. ^ Kundi, Mansoor Akber (2003). "Militarism in Politics: A Case Study of Pakistan". Pakistan Horizon. 56 (1): 19–34 - via JSTOR.

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Elections and referendums in Pakistan

General elections|

* 1920¹
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Provincial elections|

* 1937¹
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* 1954
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Referendums|

* 1960
* 1984
* 2002

Related|

* Electoral fraud in Pakistan

* ¹ As part of British India
* See also: Elections in Azad Kashmir
* Balochistan
* Gilgit-Baltistan
* Islamabad
* Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
* Punjab
* Sindh

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