Re: Will the ANP make a comeback?
I doubt the Pakhtun nationalists can ever strike a deal with Musharraf, on one end while they may not actively oppose him because they support some of his policies...issues like him being a military dictator his use of force in FATA and Balochistan, and kalabagh dam make it an impossibility..despite Chaudhry Shujaats family terms with some of them, and Musharrafs proven ability to keep alliance promises as he did with the MQM. On the other hand a deal with the PPP would be exceedingly difficult, because the PML-Mush has elements which are simply unable to work with the PPP (read up on Chaudhry Shujaats family to give you an example).
The easier option for Mush (and the one in the process) and his proxies is to rig the elections as they've done before and after with the referendum, 2002 elections and last years local elections.
In NWFP if it's a fair election, i think it'll be a three horse race between the JUI-PPP-ANP..but things are quite fluid right now, the MMA still has a considerable combined vite bank and every strike on the border by the yanks boosts them.