Summary Voting has started at 10:00 am (0500 GMT) and will last until 3:00 pm.
ISLAMABAD (AFP) - Pakistani lawmakers are voting to elect a new head of state Tuesday, marking an end to the five-year term of outgoing President Asif Ali Zardari whose party lost May s general elections.
Mamnoon Hussain, a businessman from the southern city of Karachi and close ally of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, is the most likely successor.
A long serving member of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N), Hussain addressed a party meeting in Islamabad on Monday.
"Describing the office of president as the symbol of federation, the presidential candidate pledged to serve the country and its people in his capacity as president," a statement issued by Sharif s office said.
Zardari s opposition Pakistan People s Party (PPP) has boycotted the election, complaining it was not consulted on bringing the date forward from August 6, and its absence means Sharif s candidate is certain to win.
Hussain s loyalty to Sharif and low-profile will shore up the prime minister s authority and provide a stark contrast to Zardari, considered a sharp political operator behind the scenes.
Hussain first impressed Sharif in 1999 as president of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) and was made the governor of southern Sindh province.
"He had no political affiliation until 1999 but his polite discourse and professional ability impressed Nawaz Sharif who made him governor of Sindh," Azhar Haroon, the current president of KCCI, said.
In a reminder of the enormous challenges Pakistan faces, Taliban militants launched a brazen attack on a prison in the northwest of the country overnight, escaping with prisoners after a three-hour gunfight with security forces.
A debilitating power crisis also needs to be solved and US relations are complicated by drone attacks targeting militants.
Supporters say Hussain s election could be important domestically by giving the south some stake in the federal administration, otherwise dominated by Punjab, Sharif s power base.
Pakistani presidents are elected by the members of four provincial assemblies, and both houses of parliament.
There are two candidates: Hussain and respected, retired Supreme Court judge Wajihuddin Ahmed nominated by the third largest party of cricket hero Imran Khan.
Voting has started at 10:00 am (0500 GMT) and will last until 3:00 pm, with the result expected to be announced late on Tuesday.
The Election Commission has clarified that as per Presidential Election Rules‚ the voters for the Presidential Elections including members of the Senate‚ National Assembly and the Provincial Assemblies after receiving the ballot paper‚ are required to proceed to the place reserved for marking the ballot paper with a Cross-Mark against the name of a candidate of their choice and no other mark.
The Commission also clarified that that any sign like "Tick Mark" or "OK" on the ballot paper against the name of the candidate of the voter s choice is incorrect.
According to the electoral list issued by the election commission‚ there are 706 electoral votes.
Members of the National Assembly‚ Senate and Balochistan Assembly have one vote each while number of votes of the three other provincial assemblies are equal to the strength of the Balochistan Assembly‚ which is 65.
Constitutional amendments passed by the last PPP government mean that the presidency is again a ceremonial post, a status likely to be cemented by the fact that Hussain has little personal clout.
Nawaz Sharif won a commanding general election victory in May, which marked the first time a Pakistani civilian government completed a full term in office and handed over to another at the ballot box.
