Rawalpindi’s voter registration rate stands at 60% of its estimated 2025 population — six percentage points above the national ratio of 54%.

Methodology

These figures are drawn from district-wise electoral roll statistics released by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on 30 December 2025. They are cross-referenced against population estimates derived from the 2023 Digital Census. The 2025 population estimate applies the 2.1% inter-censal annual growth rate to Rawalpindi’s census base population of 6,118,911, yielding an estimated 2025 population of 6,378,603. Registration rates are calculated by dividing the number of registered voters by this estimated population.

Voter registration in Rawalpindi

The district has 3.8 million registered voters — 1.9 million males (51.2%) and 1.9 million females (48.8%). Among males, 60% of the estimated population is registered; among females, 59%. Rawalpindi ranks 3rd out of 136 districts nationally by population size and is represented by seven Members of the National Assembly.

By voter registration rate, Rawalpindi ranks 22nd nationally and 13th of 36 within Punjab.

Why registration exceeds the national ratio

Two rules governing Pakistan’s 2023 Digital Census explain Rawalpindi’s above-average registration rate. First, household members absent for more than six months were not enumerated at their home address. Second, previous household members living elsewhere were recorded at their present address, not the origin household.

Labour migration and employment in the formal and informal sectors draw a significant share of Rawalpindi’s permanent residents to major urban centres — principally Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Faisalabad. These individuals were enumerated at their destination, not in Rawalpindi, at census time. They remain registered as voters in Rawalpindi on the basis of their permanent CNIC address. The population denominator is therefore smaller than the registered voter roll — producing a ratio above the national average.

Female voters constitute 48.8% of the registered electorate in Rawalpindi, reflecting a narrow gender gap of 2.4%. Sustained outreach to achieve equitable female registration remains important despite the district’s strong overall rate.

This post is part of FAFEN’s series on voter vs population ratio. Read more of this series here.