Explainer: What Happens Next

The prospect of a government uniting Pakistan's main opposition parties could herald a historic transition. After eight years of military-led rule under President Pervez Musharraf power should, in theory, shift back to a civilian-run parliament. But the "ticklish details", as the newspaper Dawn put it yesterday, have yet to be worked out. The most vexing detail is likely to be Musharraf's place in the new dispensation.

Various formalities, such as the notification of results and the allocation of reserve seats, should be completed by March 8, according to the election commission. Then, under the constitution, Musharraf will convene the

342-seat national assembly and invite the largest party to form a government. Asif Ali Zardari of the Pakistan People's party, which won the most seats, has already struck a deal to "cooperate" with Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League (N) and the Awami National party, a Pashtun nationalist party that swept the boards in North-West Frontier Province.

Under this scenario the prime minister would come from the PPP, the front runner candidate being Amin Fahim, a long-time party loyalist from Sind province. But with Sharif threatening an impeachment motion, the retired general may be reluctant to give birth to a government whose first purpose is to fire him.