Gallup survey shows 50pc, not 71pc, of respondents favour CM Maryam’s performance over CM Gandapur

The iVerify Pakistan team investigated this content and determined that it is false.

To reach this conclusion, iVerify Pakistan reviewed the report published by Gallup Pakistan.

A post by the Punjab government’s X account on July 16, 2025, claimed that a Gallup survey found 71 per cent of Pakistanis are satisfied with Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz over Khyber Pakhtunkhwa CM Ali Amin Gandapur. However, the Gallup survey did not state that 71pc of Pakistanis are satisfied with CM Maryam over CM Gandapur.

Gallup Pakistan, the Pakistani affiliate of Gallup International, is a leading survey research and consultancy firm in Pakistan. Gallup Pakistan is a specialist in independent third-party evaluation and ratings. The company is widely attributed to be the founder of the science of polling in Pakistan and brings over 40 years of experience in conducting and analysing opinion polling in Pakistan.

On July 13, Gallup Pakistan released a survey report titled: Detailed Assessment of Public Satisfaction with Governance and Politics in KP.

It was a province-wide public opinion survey conducted in KP that revealed widespread dissatisfaction with governance, economic performance and public service delivery. Based on face-to-face interviews with 3,000 residents, the findings reflected those polled grappling with unmet expectations, especially following the 2024 general elections and the formation of the KP government.

The survey was conducted by Gallup Pakistan in February and March.

HOW IT STARTED

On July 16, the Punjab government shared a clip on its official X account featuring a press conference by Punjab Information and Culture Minister Azma Bokhari.

The caption of the post said: “Gallup survey shows 71pc of the public is satisfied with Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, dissatisfied with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.”

The transcription of the video clip is provided below:

“There are two surveys from Gallup. In one of them, 71pc of respondents said that Maryam Nawaz Sharif sahiba is their favourite chief minister. The majority of them are PTI voters who had previously voted for PTI. Despite that, they are not satisfied with Ali Amin Gandapur and have shown support for chief minister sahiba. This is a matter of great joy and satisfaction for us.

“Thank God, the hard work Maryam Nawaz is doing in Punjab is being recognised and acknowledged across the board in Pakistan.”

Referring to another survey, Bokhari commented on public perception of corruption, saying: “The majority of KP voters believe corruption is highest in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. If I’m not wrong, 45pc of them said there is a lot of corruption there and no action is being taken. Meanwhile, they’ve given a clean chit to Punjab, saying there is no corruption. This shift is clearly visible in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.”

The post was viewed by more than 3,500 people.

The same claim was shared by PML-N supporters, with similar posts shared here, here, and here.

Journalists also shared the same clip from Bokhari’s press conference with similar captions, as seen here, here, and here.

METHODOLOGY

A fact-check was initiated to determine the veracity of the claim due to keen public interest in the performance of the two chief ministers and to hold the government accountable.

Reviewing the official Gallup Pakistan report showed that in Section 10.1 of the report, ‘Confidence in Provincial Leadership and Policymakers’, 50pc of the respondents, not 71pc, believed that CM Maryam was performing better than CM Gandapur, while 39pc preferred the KP chief minister.

The report further said that “across demographic groups, including age, education, regions and location, majorities agree” that CM Maryam’s performance was better than CM Gandapur’s.

However, none of the figures for the respondents favouring CM Maryam’s performance went as high as the claimed 71pc.

Coming to PTI supporters who thought the Punjab chief minister’s performance was better than her KP counterpart, the figure stood at 37pc.

Reviewing the report showed that the figure of 71pc was actually used in Section 2.5, ‘Gauging Public
Satisfaction with Accountability in Mega Projects’, where 71pc of KP residents agreed with the demand that the provincial government needed to conduct investigations regarding corruption during the PTI’s rule spanning 13 years.

The report also said: “Majority voters across all parties agree that KP government needs to conduct corruption investigations; 71pc of PTI voters also feel need to conduct inquiry regarding corruption during PTI era.”

A keyword search showed the ruling PML-N itself had shared the correct figures from the report about the performance of the two chief ministers in a July 14 X post.

“The Gallup survey results have exposed the declining popularity of Ali Amin Gandapur in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Fifty per cent of citizens rated Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz’s performance better than Gandapur’s, including 37pc of PTI’s own supporters. The youth are disillusioned with basic issues like employment, education, and security,” the post said.

Reached out for comment on the matter, Gallup Pakistan Executive Director Bilal I. Gilani said that while the report compared governance in Punjab and KP on various issues, only one question directly contrasted the performance of the two chief ministers.

As reported on slide 194, 50pc of respondents favoured the Punjab CM, while 39pc preferred the KP CM.

“The 71pc figure therefore, seems to be a mistake on the part of the spokesperson of Punjab government,” he said.

FACT-CHECK STATUS: FALSE

The claim that a Gallup survey found 71pc of Pakistanis are more satisfied with CM Maryam’s performance CM Gandapur’s is false

The Gallup survey shows that 50 pc, not 71pc, of respondents favour CM Maryam’s performance compared to 37pc preferring CM Gandapur’s.