Report by Samyukta Mallick
On 20th November 2022, Nepal’s general elections were held to elect the 275 members of the parliament. The counting of votes is still in progress. The polling started at 7 a.m. and ended at 5 p.m. on Sunday. It took place over 22,000 polling centres in Nepal. Over 17 million citizens are eligible to cast their votes this year.
Since these elections are being held as per the Vikram Samvat in Nepal, they are referred to as Nepal General Elections 2079 in Nepal.
Voter Turnout
The voter turnout in Nepal this year was 61%. It is lower than the previous election turnouts. In 2013, it was 77% and in 2017, it was 78%.
During the elections, security was boosted with air-patrolling around polling stations and the closing of the international border.
Why are these elections important?
This year’s elections are important as Nepal has seen political instability in its parliament for the last decade. Since 2006, after the civil war, no prime minister has served a full term. Nepal has seen 10 governments in the last 14 years since the monarchy ended in 2008.
How are the Nepal parliament members elected?
Out of all the 275 members, the citizens of Nepal will vote for 165 members through direct voting. The remaining 110 members will be elected through a proportional electoral system (a system where the party decides its own leader based on the number of votes received). The voters will also select the representatives to 7 provincial assemblies.
The leading parties
The Ruling Coalition
1. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba (has previously held the PM position 5 times) – Nepali Congress
2. Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda (former Prime Minister of Nepal) – Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre (CPN-MC)
3. Madhav Kumar (former Prime Minister of Nepal) – Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Socialist (CPN-US)
and other parties.
The Opposition Coalition
KP Sharma Oli (former Prime Minister of Nepal) – Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) and other parties.
Results Update
Two results have been announced so far.
The Nepali Congress has won both of these seats.
In the provincial assembly elections, 2 seats have gone to the Nepali Congress and 1 to others.