No candidate secures 2,340 votes, run-off to be held

KATHMANDU: With none of five candidates garnering more than 50 percent of the total vote cast during the election held on Monday, a run-off is to be held amongst the top two vote securers for the post of president of Nepali Congress (NC). 

In the vote-count held on Tuesday morning, none of the five candidates surpassed the 2,340-mark, required to be elected as the party president. A total of 4,679 delegates participated in the election. According to the NC party statute, a candidate should garner more than 50 percent votes for party president. 

Sher Bahadur Deuba, who is eying to run the party helm for a second term, secured the highest of 2,258 votes, short by 83 votes to be declared the winner. 

Dr Shekher Koirala, his nearest rival, won a total of 1,729 votes followed by Prakash Man Singh with 371 votes. Likewise, Bimalendra Nidhi secured 249 votes and Kalyan Gurung got the lowest of 20 votes. 

With this, Deuba and Koirala will face each other in the run-off. 

It is to be noted that Deuba had won the presidential race in the run-off in the 13th General Convention. He had beaten his nearest contender Ram Chandra Poudel as Krishna Prasad Situala stood third in the vote-cout and none of three candidates managed to secure more than 50 percent votes.