Asif Ali Zardari

Asif Ali Zardari (born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician who has served as the 14th president of Pakistan since 2024, having served as the 11th president from 2008 to 2013. A member of the Pakistan People's Party, he is the first Pakistani head of state born after the country's independence and is also known for being the widower of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

The son of Hakim Ali Zardari, a landowner and tribal chief from Sindh, Zardari rose to prominence after his marriage to Benazir Bhutto in 1987, who became the Prime Minister of Pakistan after her election in 1988. When Bhutto's government was dismissed by President Ghulam Ishaq Khan in 1990, Zardari was widely criticized for involvement in corruption scandals that led to its collapse. When Bhutto was reelected in 1993, Zardari served as Federal Investment Minister and Chairperson of Pakistan Environmental Protection Council. There were increasing tensions between Bhutto's brother Murtaza and Zardari, and Murtaza was killed by police in Karachi on 20 September 1996. Bhutto's government was dismissed a month later by President Farooq Leghari, and Zardari was arrested and indicted for Murtaza's murder and for corruption.

Although incarcerated, he nominally served in Parliament after being elected to the National Assembly in 1990 and Senate in 1997. He was released from jail in 2004 and went into self-exile to Dubai, but returned when Bhutto was assassinated on 27 December 2007. As the new co-chairman of the PPP, he led his party to victory in the 2008 general elections. He spearheaded a coalition that forced military ruler Pervez Musharraf to resign, and was elected president on 6 September 2008. He was acquitted of various criminal charges the same year.