Naqi defeated Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) candidate Chaudhry Latif Akbar in Thursday’s presidential election held at the AJK Legislative Assembly.
Naqi secured 32 votes, including 31 from PML-N lawmakers and one from the lone Awami Dast-o-Baazu member in the assembly.
Akbar received 13 votes, while one assembly member remained absent from the polling.
The election filled the constitutional office, which had remained vacant since January following the death of former AJK president Barrister Sultan Mahmood.
The 46-member AJK Legislative Assembly has 31 PML-N lawmakers, excluding Speaker Chaudhry Tariq Farooq, and 14 PPP members. The PML-N had therefore entered the presidential contest with a clear majority.
Naqi, 62, is a former health minister and belongs to Sudhnoti district. He previously served as AJK health minister from 2006 to 2011 and later held the portfolio in the PML-N government from 2016 to 2021.
The presidential election was scheduled after the AJK Election Commission announced the process earlier this month. Under the AJK Constitution, the president is elected by a majority of the total membership of the Legislative Assembly.
