Achakzai is a
Pashtun nationalist who was elected as the chairman of the Pashtunkhwa National Awami Party (PNAP) following the assassination of his father
Abdul Samad Khan Achakzai in a bomb attack in Quetta in 1973. Achakzai was elected as a member of the
Provincial Assembly of Balochistan in a by election. Achakzai was elected as a member of National Assembly of Pakistan in the
1993 Pakistani general election from Quetta constituency. Reportedly, he had won his first election with the support of
Pakistan Muslim League (N). Achakzai lost the National Assembly seat in the
1997 Pakistani general election. In 2007, Achakzai parted ways with his ally PML-N and formed an alliance with the
Awami National Party. In 2008, he formed an alliance with All Parties Democratic Movement and boycotted
2008 Pakistani general election Although he boycotted the polls, he remained active in the politics. due to reason that he intended to contest the upcoming general elections. From 11 to 14 March 2022, he was part of the
Pashtun National Jirga, which was held in
Bannu,
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to discuss the critical issues faced by the Pashtuns in Pakistan and Afghanistan. In the
2024 Pakistani general elections, Achakzai contested and won the NA-266 seat, making it the only seat the PKMAP managed to secure in the election season. Achakzai also contested for the
2024 Pakistani presidential elections. His candidacy was backed by the
SIC. He lost to
Asif Ali Zardari, who secured 411 electoral votes compared to Achakzai's 181 votes. ==See also==