Pakistan Prime Minister List: Every PM Since 1947
All 24 prime ministers of Pakistan — from Liaquat Ali Khan to Shehbaz Sharif — with terms, parties, records and the caretakers in between. Verified October 2026.
Last updated: 11 October 2026
1947 – 2026
The Complete List of Prime Ministers
Every prime minister in Pakistan’s 77-year history, in order. Caretakers are marked — they keep the seat warm during elections.
| # | Prime Minister | Term | Party / Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liaquat Ali Khan | 15 Aug 1947 – 16 Oct 1951 | Muslim League · assassinated |
| 2 | Khawaja Nazimuddin | 17 Oct 1951 – 17 Apr 1953 | Muslim League |
| 3 | Muhammad Ali Bogra | 17 Apr 1953 – 12 Aug 1955 | Muslim League |
| 4 | Chaudhry Muhammad Ali | 12 Aug 1955 – 12 Sep 1956 | Muslim League |
| 5 | H. S. Suhrawardy | 12 Sep 1956 – 17 Oct 1957 | Awami League |
| 6 | I. I. Chundrigar | 17 Oct 1957 – 16 Dec 1957 | Muslim League |
| 7 | Feroz Khan Noon | 16 Dec 1957 – 7 Oct 1958 | Republican Party |
| Martial law 1958–1971 — no prime minister | |||
| 8 | Nurul Amin | 7 Dec 1971 – 20 Dec 1971 | — · shortest term |
| 9 | Zulfikar Ali Bhutto | 14 Aug 1973 – 5 Jul 1977 | PPP |
| 10 | Muhammad Khan Junejo | 23 Mar 1985 – 29 May 1988 | PML |
| 11 | Benazir Bhutto | 2 Dec 1988 – 6 Aug 1990 | PPP · first woman PM |
| 12 | Nawaz Sharif | 6 Nov 1990 – 18 Apr 1993 | PML-N |
| — | Balakh Sher Mazari (caretaker) | 18 Apr – 26 May 1993 | — |
| — | Nawaz Sharif (restored) | 26 May – 18 Jul 1993 | PML-N |
| — | Moeen Qureshi (caretaker) | 18 Jul – 19 Oct 1993 | — |
| 13 | Benazir Bhutto (2nd) | 19 Oct 1993 – 5 Nov 1996 | PPP |
| — | Malik Meraj Khalid (caretaker) | 5 Nov 1996 – 17 Feb 1997 | — |
| 14 | Nawaz Sharif (2nd) | 17 Feb 1997 – 12 Oct 1999 | PML-N |
| 15 | Zafarullah Jamali | 23 Nov 2002 – 26 Jun 2004 | PML-Q |
| 16 | Shujaat Hussain (interim) | 30 Jun – 28 Aug 2004 | PML-Q |
| 17 | Shaukat Aziz | 28 Aug 2004 – 15 Nov 2007 | PML-Q |
| — | Mian Soomro (caretaker) | 16 Nov 2007 – 24 Mar 2008 | — |
| 18 | Yousaf Raza Gillani | 25 Mar 2008 – 19 Jun 2012 | PPP · disqualified |
| 19 | Raja Pervaiz Ashraf | 22 Jun 2012 – 24 Mar 2013 | PPP |
| — | Mir Hazar Khoso (caretaker) | 25 Mar – 5 Jun 2013 | — |
| 20 | Nawaz Sharif (3rd) | 5 Jun 2013 – 28 Jul 2017 | PML-N · disqualified |
| 21 | Shahid Khaqan Abbasi | 1 Aug 2017 – 31 May 2018 | PML-N |
| — | Nasirul Mulk (caretaker) | 1 Jun – 18 Aug 2018 | — |
| 22 | Imran Khan | 18 Aug 2018 – 10 Apr 2022 | PTI · no-confidence |
| 23 | Shehbaz Sharif | 11 Apr 2022 – 14 Aug 2023 | PML-N |
| — | Anwarul Haq Kakar (caretaker) | 14 Aug 2023 – 4 Mar 2024 | — |
| 24 | Shehbaz Sharif (2nd) | 4 Mar 2024 – present | PML-N · incumbent |
The early years were turbulent — seven PMs in eleven years before the 1958 martial law. Stability returned in fits and starts; no prime minister has yet completed a full five-year term and handed over to an elected successor. Deeper dives: the 2nd PM, caretaker PMs.
Incumbent
The Current Prime Minister: Shehbaz Sharif
Twice premier, in the hardest job in Pakistani politics.
Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif became the 24th prime minister on 4 March 2024, securing 201 votes in the 336-member National Assembly against PTI-backed Omar Ayub Khan’s 92, after the PML-N stitched a coalition with the PPP, MQM-P and others following the 8 February 2024 general election. The oath was administered by President Arif Alvi at Aiwan-i-Sadr. Shehbaz previously served as PM from April 2022 to August 2023 after Imran Khan’s ouster in a no-confidence vote — a tenure remembered for the last-gasp IMF bailout. The younger brother of three-time premier Nawaz Sharif, he built his reputation as Punjab’s chief minister (2008–2018), famous for working late and demanding the same of everyone else.
The process
How Pakistan’s PM Is Chosen
Not a popular vote — a parliamentary one.
Under Article 91 of the Constitution, the prime minister is elected by the National Assembly: after a general election, the member commanding the majority’s confidence becomes chief executive. The president formally appoints the PM, who then forms the federal cabinet. The PM must be a Muslim member of the National Assembly. Removal comes through a vote of no-confidence — used successfully only once, against Imran Khan in April 2022 — or disqualification by the courts, which ended the tenures of Yousaf Raza Gillani (2012) and Nawaz Sharif (2017).
Firsts & records
Records and Firsts
The superlatives of the premiership.
Nawaz Sharif
The only person elected prime minister three times (1990, 1997, 2013) — and the longest-serving overall at roughly nine years.
Benazir Bhutto
The first woman to head a democratic government in a Muslim-majority country (1988), and the youngest PM at 35.
Nurul Amin
The shortest tenure — 7 to 20 December 1971, as the country broke apart.
Imran Khan
The first (and only) PM removed by a vote of no-confidence, April 2022.
Gillani & Nawaz
The two PMs disqualified by the Supreme Court — Gillani (2012, contempt) and Nawaz (2017, Panama Papers).
Caretakers
Seven caretaker PMs have held the office between elected governments — the bridge of every transition.
Transitions
Caretaker Prime Ministers
The neutral hands that run the country during elections.
When the National Assembly completes its term, a caretaker prime minister takes over to run day-to-day affairs and oversee free elections — chosen by consensus between the outgoing PM and the Leader of the Opposition (or, failing that, by a parliamentary committee or the Election Commission). Recent caretakers: Mir Hazar Khan Khoso (2013), Nasirul Mulk (2018) and Anwarul Haq Kakar (2023–24). They can’t make major policy decisions — their job is the election. Full list: caretaker prime ministers of Pakistan.
Go deeper
Explore the Leadership Guides
Every PM question, answered in its own guide.
Top 10 Leaders of Pakistan
From Jinnah to today — the figures who shaped the country.
Common questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Short answers to the questions readers ask most about this topic.
Who is the current prime minister of Pakistan?
Who was the first prime minister of Pakistan?
How is the prime minister of Pakistan elected?
Who was the best prime minister of Pakistan?
Who will be the next prime minister of Pakistan?
What is a caretaker prime minister?
Start at the Beginning
The story of the premiership starts with Liaquat Ali Khan — the Quaid’s right hand, assassinated at Liaquat Bagh in 1951.
Terms and dates per official records and press archives, verified October 2026. Cabinet portfolios change — confirm current ministers on cabinet.gov.pk.