Prime Ministerial candidate Balendra Shah from the Rastriya Swatantra Party is currently ahead of former PM K.P. Sharma Oli in Jhapa-5, eastern Nepal, as the RSP gains a significant early advantage in the parliamentary elections. Shah, a former mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, is competing against Oli in his traditional political stronghold, setting the stage for a battle between two prime ministerial hopefuls.
In the initial vote count on the Ekantipur online portal, Shah has garnered 1,478 votes, while Oli has received 385 votes. Alongside Shah’s lead, the RSP is also making substantial progress in the early vote tally, aiming to break the long-standing dominance of traditional political parties in national politics.
As per the latest updates, the RSP is leading in 39 electoral constituencies, with the Nepali Congress ahead in three constituencies. The Nepali Communist Party (NCP) is leading in two constituencies, while the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist), under former Prime Minister Oli’s leadership, has not secured a lead in any constituency.
Vote counting is currently ongoing under the First-Past-the-Post (FPTP) system, which will elect 165 members of the House of Representatives, the Lower House of Parliament. An additional 110 members will be elected through the proportional representation system to complete the 275-member Lower House.
Preliminary results indicate a potential shift in the long-standing dominance of major political parties like the Nepali Congress, the CPN-UML, and the Nepal Communist Party, formed post the merger of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) and the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Socialist), among others.
Nepal is conducting its first elections following the Gen Z protests in September last year, which led to the downfall of the coalition government headed by then-Prime Minister Oli. A prevailing sentiment among the Nepali populace that traditional parties and their leadership were hindering progress fueled robust Gen Z protests.
With the elections occurring six months after the Gen Z uprising, traditional political parties seem to be underperforming, while the relatively new political entity, the RSP, led by former media figure Rabi Lamichhane, is making a notable impact in the polls.
