New Partners in Pakistan

In a parliamentary vote, Pakistanis dealt President Pervez Musharraf's party a decisive setback, leaving the U.S. to consider the possible departure of a key ally in the fight against al Qaeda.

The former army chief's party conceded defeat today, with its head saying the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Q party will "accept the results with an open heart" and "will sit on opposition benches" in Parliament. While still being tallied, early unofficial results on 229 of the 268 National Assembly seats up for grabs in yesterday's vote showed slain opposition leader Benazir Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party winning 33% of those seats. The Pakistan Muslim League-N, affiliated with former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, took 27% of the contested seats, while Mr. Musharraf's party was a distant third, with 14%, according to Pakistan's Geo TV. The early results seem to leave the opposition within striking distance of the two-thirds majority that would allow them to start impeachment proceedings against Mr. Musharraf, whose heavy-handed efforts against both religious extremists and political adversaries has eroded his popularity among wide swaths of the population. For his part, Mr. Sharif, who was ousted in Mr. Musharraf's bloodless coup in 1999, reminded reporters today that the president had said he would step down when the people wanted him to do so. "And now people have given their verdict," Mr. Sharif said, adding that political parties should "work together to get rid of dictatorship."

While the vote's final results are still forthcoming, Washington is doubtlessly bracing for change. Until the December assassination of Ms. Bhutto, the U.S. had seen a power-sharing situation between Mr. Musharraf and her as the best bet for putting an increasingly volatile Pakistan back on a democratic track while providing a framework for stability that would allow the fight against terrorists to continue. Now with Ms. Bhutto gone, and Mr. Musharraf facing the possibility of impeachment, the transition to new leadership in the country stands to be much more jarring. Perhaps that explains the somewhat reserved reaction offered by Washington to the election results. Accompanying President Bush on his visit to Africa, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said today the U.S. had encouraged "people to be able to express their vote freely, and for this election to inspire confidence in people about their government." What the election outcome means for the U.S.-Pakistan antiterror partnership seems unclear. Besides their sour attitude toward Mr. Musharraf, the largest Pakistani parties often share little common ground and have longstanding animosities. For instance, back in 1997 Mr. Sharif's government imprisoned Asif Zardari, Ms. Bhutto's widower who now wields power within the PPP. Nor will it be lost on the incoming government that Mr. Musharraf's popularity suffered from his close cooperation with the U.S., which some blame for aggravating tensions within the country. From the U.S. perspective, it would seem that for now policy makers have little choice but to wait to see how events unfold in a new, more-democratic Pakistan.