Barrister Sultan Mahmood has been elected as the new president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).

Mahmood, who has previously served as the prime minister of the region, will be sworn in on August 24, the same day the tenure of President Sardar Masood Khan will end.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) candidate secured more votes than the joint opposition candidate Mian Abdul Waheed. Barrister Mahmood secured 34 votes.

Earlier, polling for the election of AJK president had begun at the AJK Legislative Assembly in Muzaffarabad. Fifty-one members of the AJK Legislative Assembly voted for the election of the 28th president of AJK.

Abdul Qayyum Niazi elected as AJK prime minister

On August 4, PTI's Abdul Qayyum Niazi was elected as the 13th prime minister of AJK. He secured 33 votes in the AJK Legislative Assembly, whereas joint opposition's candidate Chaudhry Latif Akbar received 15 votes.