Paper short abstract:

This paper will focus on the electoral campaign 2013 of the Pakistan Movement for Justice (PTI), a party which seems to have emerged as a third force in Pakistani politics. I will attempt to analyze its newfound popularity, sociology as well as the strategies adopted to attract more voters.

Paper long abstract:

This paper will focus on the electoral campaign of the Pakistan Tehreek-e Insaf (Pakistan Movement for Justice), a young party founded in 1996 by the cricketer and philanthropist Imran Khan. PTI seems to have emerged as a third force in Pakistani politics after 15 years of being a "mini-party". It has succeeded in politicizing segments of the Pakistani population (the youth, women, the westernized elite) which had long remained aloof from mainstream politics. How is that to be explained?

On the basis of a one-month fieldwork in Penjab in April/may 2013 in the framework of the general elections, and of a broader research on PTI conducted since 2007, this presentation will attempt to analyze some of the main elements characterizing the PTI campaign: the original "dispositifs de sensibilisation" (The political analyst Christophe Traïni describes them as the material supports and configurations like songs, videos, pictures, slogans, social media, etc. used to trigger emotional reactions predisposing those who feel them to join the cause), but also the sociology of the party's candidates and activists (among others educated youth, professionals and the traditional "feudals") as well as the charismatic leadership of the chairman Imran Khan which appears as one of the main elements explaining the party's popularity. Has PTI brought a new "style" in Pakistani politics? To what extent did that take place by breaking away (or not) from the traditional patronage politics?