The vote count experienced significant delays on Friday, with results from only a few national parliament seats announced over 12 hours after polls closed.

An "internet issue" was the reason behind the delay in results, Zafar Iqbal, special secretary at the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), said without elaborating.

The government suspended mobile phone services ahead of the election on Thursday as a security measure, and they were being partially resumed.

The ECP had announced results for eight of the 265 contested seats in parliament on early Friday

Four seats were won by the (PML-N) and one by the PPP. Independents won the other three.

The main contests are expected to be between candidates backed Imran Khan,and the PML-N of Sharif

With counting continuing into Friday morning, a clear picture was likely to emerge only later in the day.

A party needs 133 seats in parliament for a simple majority but many analysts believe the vote may not produce a clear winner.