Who could the next Pakistani PM after ousting Khan be?

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Imran Khan was ousted as Pakistan's Prime Minister on Sunday after losing a no-confidence vote, clearing the door for an unlikely opposition alliance to tackle the same problems that plagued the him.

A new prime minister will be appointed on Monday, with centrist Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif already picked to lead the nuclear-armed country of 220 million people.

His first responsibility would be to assemble a cabinet that includes members of the center-left Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), as well as the smaller conservative Jamiatul Ulema-e-Islam-F (JUI-F).

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The PPP and PML-N are dynastic parties that have dominated Pakistani politics for decades, and their relations are bound to deteriorate in the run-up to the next election, which must take place by October 2023.

Fight until the end

In Pakistan, no prime minister has ever served a complete term, but Khan is the first to be ousted by a vote of no-confidence.

"Sad day for Pakistan... a good man sent home," his former Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said on Twitter.

He did everything he could trying to defy an ousting attempt he blamed on the West, including dissolving parliament and holding new elections, but the Supreme Court ruled last week that all of his measures were illegal and ordered the assembly to reconvene and vote.

Members of Khan's party said on Friday that they will strive to postpone the vote as long as possible, following Khan's pledge to "fight" any attempt to oust him, citing foreign conspiracy against Islamabad and shining at a "threat letter" from the US because he refused to establish US military bases in Pakistan.

Pakistan's PM stated on Friday that his government gave an official note to the United States Embassy in Islamabad to protest Washington's interference in the country's affairs. 

Khan, who was elected with strong popular support, said late Friday that he was dissatisfied with the court verdict but accepted it. After dissolving parliament, he called for an election, but he said he would not recognize any opposition government imposed by the West.

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"I will not accept an imported government," he told the nation in a late-night address, suggesting that the move to oust him was part of a foreign conspiracy and calling for peaceful protests on Sunday. "I'm ready for a struggle."

The no-confidence vote garnered 174 votes in favor, while the National Assembly has 342 MPs, and the result was announced by PML-N's Ayaz Sadiq, who was chairing the session instead of speaker Asad Qaiser who had resigned minutes before the session started.