Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (justice movement party) has been elected as the new prime minister of the country on Friday evening in a polling held by the National Assembly or lower house of the parliament.

Speaker of the National Assembly, Asad Qaiser, announced that Imran Khan, chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), won the election by securing the lower house's 176 votes out of the total 272 votes cast in Friday's polling.

Imran Khan's sole rival Shehbaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), who was a joint candidate of three major political parties, secured 96 votes, said the speaker.

A total of 172 votes were required in the 342-member National Assembly. Imran Khan's party had 151 members in the house and he also received votes from other parties.

Earlier on Monday, a total of 330 newly elected members took the oath, but 53 members of Pakistan Peoples Party, one member of Jamaat-e-Islami and others, who were supposed to vote for their ally Shehbaz Sharif, did not cast their votes after some differences.

Several parties including Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQMP), Pakistan Muslim League (PML), Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) and Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) also voted for Khan.

Khan's party the PTI emerged as the single largest party in the country's July 25 general elections.

Khan will be sworn in as the 22nd elected prime minister of Pakistan on Saturday by the country's President Mamnoon Hussain.

The 65-year-old Khan, who started politics by establishing his own party in 1996, becomes the chief executive of the country for the first time.

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