2026 Nepalese general election

2026 Nepalese general election

←  2022 5 March 2026 Next →
←  outgoing members
All 275 seats in the House of Representatives 138 seats needed for a majority
Leader Purna Bahadur Khadka K. P. Sharma Oli Pushpa Kamal Dahal Party Congress CPN (UML) NCP Last election 25.71%, 89 seats 26.95%, 78 seats New Party Current seats 88 78 42 Seats needed 49 60 96   Leader Rabi Lamichhane Rajendra Lingden Ashok Rai Party RSP RPP PSP Last election 10.70%, 20 seats 5.58%, 14 seats New Party Current seats 21 14 7 Seats needed 117 124 131
Incumbent Prime Minister Sushila Karki (interim) Independent

Early general elections are expected to be held in Nepal on 5 March 2026 to elect the 275 members of the House of Representatives as announced on 12 September 2025 by the President of Nepal, on the recommendation of Government of Nepal. ^{[1] [2] [3]}

There remains two ballots in the election: one to elect 165 members from single-member constituencies via FPTP, and the other to elect the remaining 110 members from a single nation-wide constituency via party-list proportional representation, as mentioned in the Constitution of Nepal. ^[4]

Background

Further information: 2025 Nepalese Gen Z protests

On 8 September 2025, large-scale protests and demonstrations took place across Nepal, predominantly organized by students and young citizens. ^[5] On 12 September 2025, the Federal Parliament of Nepal was dissolved and Sushila Karki was sworn in as interim Prime Minister. ^{[6] [7]} President Ram Chandra Poudel announced that elections would be held on 5 March 2026. ^[8] The elections were scheduled to have taken place any time before November 2027.

Timetable

The key dates are listed below:

6 October 2025	Legislature parliament dissolved
	Cabinet announces election date
21 November 2025	Last date to register to be on electoral roll
26 November 2025	Last day for party registration at Election Commission
2-3 January 2026	Parties submit preliminary closed list for proportional representation
TBD	Election code of conduct starts
TBD	Candidate nomination for first past the post
TBD	Closed list for proportional representation finalized and published
5 March 2026	Election day

Electoral system

The 275 members of the legislature are elected by two methods; 165 are elected from single-member constituencies by first-past-the-post voting and 110 seats are elected by closed list proportional representation from a single nationwide constituency. ^[9] Voters receive separate ballot papers for the two methods. A party or electoral alliance has to pass the election threshold of 3% of the overall valid vote to be allocated a seat in the proportional vote. ^[10] Nepal uses the Webster method to allocate proportional seats. ^[11]

Voting is limited to Nepali citizens aged 18 or over of sound mind and not having been declared ineligible under federal election fraud and punishment laws. ^[12]

Eligibility to vote

To vote in the general election, one must be: ^[12]

• on the electoral roll
• aged 18 or over on final date of registration of voter id
• a citizen of Nepal
• of sound mind
• not ineligible as per federal election fraud and punishment laws

Pre-election arrangements

Party		Ideology	2022 results		At dissolution
			PR Votes (%)	Seats
	Nepali Congress	Social democracy Democratic socialism	25.71	89 / 275	88 / 275
	CPN (UML)	Marxism–Leninism People's Multiparty Democracy	26.95	78 / 275	79 / 275
	CPN (Maoist Centre)	Marxism–Leninism–Maoism–Prachanda Path	11.13	32 / 275	32 / 275
	Rastriya Swatantra Party	Populism Economic liberalism	10.70	20 / 275	21 / 275
	Rastriya Prajatantra Party	Constitutional monarchism Economic liberalism Hindu nationalism	5.58	14 / 275	13 / 275
	CPN (Unified Socialist)	Marxism–Leninism People's Multiparty Democracy	2.83	10 / 275	10 / 275
	People's Socialist Party	Democratic socialism Secularism	New party		7 / 275
	Janamat Party	Social democracy Regionalism Madheshi rights	3.74	6 / 275	6 / 275
	People's Socialist Party, Nepal	Democratic socialism Secularism Regionalism	3.99	12 / 275	5 / 275
	Loktantrik Samajwadi	Social democracy Madheshi rights	1.58	4 / 275	4 / 275
	Nagrik Unmukti Party	Regionalism Social democracy Tharu minority interests	2.57	3 / 275	4 / 275
	Nepal Workers Peasants Party	Marxism–Leninism Juche Mao Zedong Thought	0.71	1 / 275	1 / 275
	Rastriya Janamorcha	Anti-federalism Communism Marxism–Leninism	0.44	1 / 275	1 / 275
	Aam Janata Party	Marxism–Leninism–Maoism	New party		1 / 275
	Independent	—	—	5 / 275	2 / 275

Electoral alliance and parties

The Election Commission called political parties seeking to contest the elections scheduled for 5 March, 2026 to be registered within 26 November 2025. Several new parties applied for registration to participate in elections which claimed to represent "Gen-Z protesters" involved in the ousting of the K. P. Sharma Oli-led government. ^{[13] [14]}

  Nepali Congress+

Party [15]		Symbol	Leader	Leader's Seat	Seats contested	Male candidates	Female candidates
	Nepali Congress		Purna Bahadur Khadka	TBD

  CPN (UML)+

Party [16]		Symbol	Leader	Leader's Seat	Seats contested	Male candidates	Female candidates
	CPN (UML)		KP Sharma Oli	TBD

  PSP+

Party [17] [18]		Symbol	Leader	Leader's Seat	Seats contested	Male candidates	Female candidates
	People's Socialist Party		Ashok Rai	TBD
	Nagrik Unmukti Party, Nepal		Resham Lal Chaudhary	TBD
	Rastriya Mukti Party Nepal		Rajendra Mahato	TBD

UNP+

Party [19] [20]		Symbol	Leader	Leader's Seat	Seats contested	Male candidates	Female candidates
	Ujyaalo Nepal		Anup Kumar Upadhyaya	TBD
	Hamro Party		Khagendra Sunar	TBD

Other parties

Party		Symbol	Leader	Leader's Seat	Seats contested	Male candidates	Female candidates
	Nepali Communist Party		Pushpa Kamal Dahal	TBD
	Rastriya Swatantra Party		Rabi Lamichhane	TBD
	Rastriya Prajatantra Party		Rajendra Prasad Lingden	TBD
	Janamat Party		C. K. Raut	TBD
	People's Socialist Party, Nepal		Upendra Yadav	TBD
	Loktantrik Samajwadi		Mahantha Thakur	TBD
	Nepal Workers Peasants Party		Narayan Man Bijukchhe	TBD
	Rastriya Janamorcha		Chitra Bahadur K.C.	TBD
	Aam Janata Party		Prabhu Sah	TBD
New formations
Party		Symbol	Leader	Leader's Seat	Seats contested	Male candidates	Female candidates
	Pragatisheel Loktantrik		Janardan Sharma	TBD
	CPN (Maoist)		Biplav	TBD
	CPN (United)		Ghanashyam Bhusal	TBD
	Shram Sanskriti		Harka Sampang	TBD
	Nepal Sadhbhawana		Anil Kumar Jha	TBD
	Rastriya Urjasheel Party Nepal		Yogendra Mandal	TBH
	Gatishil Loktantrik Party		Birendra Bahadur Basnet	TBD

Candidates

Koshi Province

District	Constituency
		Congress	CPN (UML)	NCP	RSP	RPP	PSP+			PLP
Taplejung	Taplejung 1
Panchthar	Panchthar 1
Ilam	Ilam 1
	Ilam 2
Jhapa	Jhapa 1
	Jhapa 2
	Jhapa 3
	Jhapa 4
	Jhapa 5
Sankhuwasabha	Sankhuwasabha 1
Tehrathum	Tehrathum 1
Bhojpur	Bhojpur 1
Dhankuta	Dhankuta 1
Morang	Morang 1
	Morang 2
	Morang 3
	Morang 4
	Morang 5
	Morang 6
Sunsari	Sunsari 1
	Sunsari 2
	Sunsari 3
	Sunsari 4
Solukhumbu	Solukhumbu 1
Khotang	Khotang 1
Okhaldhunga	Okhaldhunga 1
Udayapur	Udayapur 1
	Udayapur 2

Madhesh Province

District	Constituency
		Congress	CPN (UML)	PSP+			PSP-N	NCP	LSP-N	Janamat	RSP
Saptari	Saptari 1
	Saptari 2
	Saptari 3
	Saptari 4
Siraha	Siraha 1
	Siraha 2
	Siraha 3
	Siraha 4
Dhanusha	Dhanusha 1
	Dhanusha 2
	Dhanusha 3	Bimalendra Nidhi	Julie Kumari Mahato						Parmeshwor Sah Sudi		Manish Jha
	Dhanusha 4
Mahottari	Mahottari 1
	Mahottari 2
	Mahottari 3
	Mahottari 4
Sarlahi	Sarlahi 1
	Sarlahi 2
	Sarlahi 3
	Sarlahi 4
Rautahat	Rautahat 1
	Rautahat 2
	Rautahat 3
	Rautahat 4
Bara	Bara 1
	Bara 2
	Bara 3
	Bara 4
Parsa	Parsa 1
	Parsa 2
	Parsa 3
	Parsa 4

Bagmati Province

District	Constituency
		Congress	CPN (UML)	NCP	RSP	RPP	UNP	NWPP
Dolakha	Dolakha 1
Ramechhap	Ramechhap 1
Sindhuli	Sindhuli 1
	Sindhuli 2
Rasuwa	Rasuwa 1
Dhading	Dhading 1
	Dhading 2
Nuwakot	Nuwakot 1
	Nuwakot 2
Kathmandu	Kathmandu 1
	Kathmandu 2
	Kathmandu 3
	Kathmandu 4
	Kathmandu 5
	Kathmandu 6
	Kathmandu 7
	Kathmandu 8
	Kathmandu 9
	Kathmandu 10
Bhaktapur	Bhaktapur 1
	Bhaktapur 2
Lalitpur	Lalitpur 1
	Lalitpur 2
	Lalitpur 3
Kavrepalanchok	Kavrepalanchok 1
	Kavrepalanchok 2
Sindhupalchok	Sindhupalchok 1
	Sindhupalchok 2
Makwanpur	Makwanpur 1
	Makwanpur 2
Chitwan	Chitwan 1
	Chitwan 2
	Chitwan 3

Gandaki Province

District	Constituency
		Congress	CPN (UML)	NCP	RSP	PLP	RPP
Gorkha	Gorkha 1
	Gorkha 2
Manang	Manang 1
Lamjung	Lamjung 1
Kaski	Kaski 1
	Kaski 2
	Kaski 3
Tanahun	Tanahun 1
	Tanahun 2
Syangja	Syangja 1
	Syangja 2
Nawalpur [a]	Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta East) 1
	Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta East) 2
Mustang	Mustang 1
Myagdi	Myagdi 1
Baglung	Baglung 1
	Baglung 2
Parbat	Parbat 1

Lumbini Province

District	Constituency
		Congress	CPN (UML)	NCP	RPP	PSP+			RSP
Gulmi	Gulmi 1
	Gulmi 2
Palpa	Palpa 1
	Palpa 2
Arghakhanchi	Arghakhanchi 1
Nawalparasi (West of Bardaghat Susta) [a]	Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta West) 1
	Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta West) 2
Rupandehi	Rupandehi 1
	Rupandehi 2
	Rupandehi 3
	Rupandehi 4
	Rupandehi 5
Kapilvastu	Kapilvastu 1
	Kapilvastu 2
	Kapilvastu 3
Eastern Rukum	Eastern Rukum 1
Rolpa	Rolpa 1
Pyuthan	Pyuthan 1
Dang	Dang 1
	Dang 2
	Dang 3
Banke	Banke 1
	Banke 2
	Banke 3
Bardiya	Bardiya 1
	Bardiya 2

Karnali Province

District	Constituency
		Congress	CPN (UML)	NCP	PLP	RPP
Salyan	Salyan 1
Dolpa	Dolpa 1
Mugu	Mugu 1
Jumla	Jumla 1
Kalikot	Kalikot 1
Humla	Humla 1
Jajarkot	Jajarkot 1
Dailekh	Dailekh 1
	Dailekh 2
Surkhet	Surkhet 1
	Surkhet 2
Western Rukum	Western Rukum 1

Sudurpashchim Province

District	Constituency
		Congress	CPN (UML)	NCP	NUP-N	PSP+			UNP
Bajura	Bajura 1
Achham	Achham 1
	Achham 2
Bajhang	Bajhang 1
Doti	Doti 1
Kailali	Kailali 1
	Kailali 2
	Kailali 3
	Kailali 4
	Kailali 5
Darchula	Darchula 1
Baitadi	Baitadi 1
Dadeldhura	Dadeldhura 1
Kanchanpur	Kanchanpur 1
	Kanchanpur 2
	Kanchanpur 3

See also

• 2022 Nepalese general election

Notes

1. When Nepal was subdivided into 7 provinces in 2015, the area in Nawalparasi District was split into 2 districts in different provinces. Nawalpur District (or Nawalparasi (East of Bardaghat Susta) district) went to Gandaki Province, while Nawalparasi (West of Bardaghat Susta) district (or Nawalpur District) went to Lumbini Province. ^[21]

References

1. "President dissolves HoR, elections on March 5, 2026". myrepublica.nagariknetwork.com. 2024-08-08. Retrieved 2025-11-08.
2. "Nepal sets March 5 vote, restrictions eased as interim gov't takes charge". Al Jazeera. 2025-09-13. Retrieved 2025-11-08.
3. "EC begins preliminary preparations for March elections". The Himalayan Times. 2025-09-16. Retrieved 2025-11-08.
4. "Parties' Mission 84 Gimmick Or Genuine Campaign?". The Rising Nepal . 5 December 2023. Retrieved 2024-08-12.
5. Daha, Phanindra; Atkinson, Emily; Khan, Iftikhar (2025-09-10). "Why GenZ has taken over the streets in Nepal". BBC. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
6. "Sushila Karki appointed Prime Minister under Article 61, becomes Nepal's first female head of government". Online Khabar. 12 September 2025. Retrieved 12 September 2025.
7. Ellis-Petersen, Hannah (12 September 2025). "Nepal appoints its first female PM after historic week of deadly protests". The Guardian . ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 12 September 2025.
8. Sharma, Gopal; Ahmed, Aftab (2025-09-13). "Nepal sets March elections after naming interim prime minister". Reuters. Retrieved 2025-09-14.
9. Article 84 Constitution of Nepal
10. Kafle, Narayn (5 September 2017). "स‌ंसद् र प्रदेशको निर्वाचन विधेयक पारित" [Parliament and provincial election bills passed]. Gorkhapatra (in Nepali). Archived from the original on 2017-09-06. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
11. प्रतिनिधि सभा सदस्य निर्वाचन ऐन, २०७४ [House of Representatives Member Election Act, 2017](PDF) (Act, Schedule 2) (in Nepali). Legislature Parliament of Nepal. 7 September 2017. p. 42.
12. Electoral Roll Act, 2017 (PDF) (Act 23, section 6 & 23) (in Nepali). 2 February 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 September 2017. Retrieved 5 September 2017.
13. "17 new political parties apply for registration at Nepal's Election Commission". The Hindu. PTI. 2025-10-31. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 2025-11-04.
14. "52,865 new voters registered with EC for 2026 polls". GorakhaPatra. Retrieved 2025-11-04.
15. "NC registers party to contest National Assembly and House of Representatives elections". Setopati. Retrieved 2025-11-25.
16. "CPN-UML registers for House of Representatives Election". OnlineKhabar English News. 2025-11-25. Retrieved 2025-11-25.
17. "Ashok Rai, Resham Chaudhary, Rajendra Mahato agree to contest elections under one symbol". Setopati. Retrieved 2025-11-25.
18. "JSP, Rastriya Mukti, and NUPA Nepal to contest elections together with Jato (Nepali stone grinder) symbol". Khabarhub. Retrieved 2025-11-25.
19. "खगेन्द्र सुनारकाे 'हाम्राे पार्टी नेपाल'ले कुलमानकै पार्टीकाे चिह्नबाट चुनाव लड्ने". Naya Patrika. Retrieved 2025-11-26.
20. "उनेपा र हापाने एउटै चुनाव चिह्नमा लड्ने". ekantipur.com (in Nepali). Retrieved 2025-11-26.
21. "पूर्वी नवलपरासीको नाम 'नवलपुर जिल्ला' र सदरमुकाम कावासोतीमा राख्ने निर्णय" (in Nepali). Kantipur (daily). 22 September 2017. Archived from the original on 2 May 2023. Retrieved 22 October 2024.