The Pakistan People's Party (Urdu: پاکستان پیپلز پارٹی, Sindhi: پاڪستان پيپلز پارٽي; abbr. PPP) is a centre-left, social-democratic political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third largest party in the National Assembly and second largest in the Senate of Pakistan. The party was founded in 1967 in Lahore, when a number of prominent left-wing politicians in the country joined hands against the military dictatorship of President Ayub Khan, under the leadership of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Affiliated with Socialist International,[9] the PPP's platform has formerly been socialist, and its stated priorities continue to include transforming Pakistan into a social-democratic state,[10] promoting secular and egalitarian values, establishing social justice, and maintaining a strong military.[11] The party, alongside the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, is one of the 3 largest political parties of Pakistan.
Since its foundation in 1967, it has been a major centre-left force in the country and the party's leadership has been dominated by the members of the Bhutto family.[12] Its centre of power lies in the southern province of Sindh.[13] The People's Party has been voted into power on five separate occasions (1970, 1977, 1988, 1993 and 2008), while on 4 occasions (1990, 1997, 2002 and 2013) it emerged as the largest opposition party. There have been a total of four Prime Ministers from PPP.
The PPP dominated the politics of Pakistan during the 1970s, suffering a temporary decline during the military dictatorship of Zia-ul-Haq. After the re-establishment of democracy in 1988 following Zia's death, a two-party system developed, consisting of the People's Party and the Islamic Democratic Alliance, later succeeded by the Nawaz League. The party served as the principal opposition to the Pervez Musharraf-led military government from 1999 to 2008.
