Nepal Holds House of Representatives Election Amid Special Post-Jana Andolan Circumstances

Voting is taking place across the country today for the House of Representatives election, held under special circumstances following the Jana Andolan movement. A total of 18,903,689 voters are registered nationwide, and 215,000 personnel have been deployed to conduct the election.

According to the Election Commission, there are 9,663,358 male voters, 9,240,131 female voters, and 200 other voters, totaling 18,903,689. Additionally, 186,142 temporary voters have been registered.

Voting will occur simultaneously across all 77 districts from 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM today. This is the third House of Representatives election since the establishment of the Federal Democratic Republic, with previous elections held in 2074 and 2079 BS.

Voting is being held for 165 constituencies under the 'First Past the Post' (FPTP) system for the House of Representatives, and for 110 seats under Proportional Representation (PR). In the FPTP system, 65 political parties are competing for 61 constituencies using 61 election symbols. Under this system, 3,017 male candidates, 388 female candidates, and one other candidate are in the electoral contest.

For the PR system, there are 1,363 male candidates and 1,772 female candidates, totaling 3,135 candidates.

For the election, 10,967 polling stations and 23,112 voting centers have been designated across the country. 143 temporary polling stations have also been established. Arrangements have been made to prioritize senior citizens, persons with disabilities, the infirm, and pregnant women for easier voting.

In terms of security, 79,727 Nepal Army personnel, 75,797 Nepal Police personnel, 34,567 Armed Police Force personnel, 1,921 personnel from the National Investigation Department, and 149,090 temporary police have been mobilized. The Commission stated that a total of 215,000 personnel have been deployed to complete the election.

A total of 42,251,200 ballot papers for both FPTP and PR have been printed and delivered to the respective polling centers. This time, four international and 39 national organizations are observing the election.

President Ramchandra Paudel, Vice President Ram Sahayaprasad Yadav, Prime Minister Sushila Karki, and Acting Chief Election Commissioner Ramprasad Bhandari have called upon voters to participate enthusiastically in the voting process.