Next Bangladeshi general election

Last updated

Next Bangladeshi general election
Flag of Bangladesh.svg
  2024 TBA

All 300 directly elected seats in the Jatiya Sangsad
151 seats needed for a majority
Opinion polls
 
TariqueZia.jpg
baaNlaadesh aaoy'aamii liiger byaaj.svg
GM Quader 2023.png
Leader Tarique Rahman Disputed leadership GM Quader
Party BNP AL JP(E)
Alliance JOF GA
Leader since14 July 2019 8 February 2018
Leader's seatTBD TBD
Last electionBoycotted22411
Seats neededIncrease2.svg 151Steady2.svgIncrease2.svg 140

 
Shafiqur Rahman.jpg
Mujahidul Islam Selim.jpg
Leader Shafiqur Rahman Mujahidul Islam Selim
Party Jamaat-e-Islami CPB
Alliance LDA
Leader since12 November 20195 August 2024
Leader's seatTBDTBD
Last electionBoycottedBoycotted
Seats neededIncrease2.svg 151Increase2.svg 151

Bangladesch Wahlkreiskarte.svg
Constituency map

Incumbent Chief Adviser

Muhammad Yunus
Independent (interim)




Early general elections are expected to be held in Bangladesh to elect members of the 13th Jatiya Sangsad following the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the formation of an interim government with Muhammad Yunus as its Chief Advisor.

Contents

Background

The 12th Sangsad was dissolved by President Mohammed Shahabuddin following the resignation of Sheikh Hasina. [1] In June 2024, student protests erupted throughout the country, demanding the reform of quotas in government jobs. The protests were met with brutal crackdown by law-enforcement agencies and paramilitary forces, resulting in the deaths of many students. By August, the protests intensified into large-scale civil unrest against the government which eventually culminated in Hasina's resignation on 5 August.

Following negotiations between student leaders and the Armed Forces, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was appointed as Chief Adviser to head an interim government with a view to leading the country to new elections. [2]

The Awami League won the January 2024 general elections and formed the government. [3] There was record low turnout, and it was a controversial election. The United States Department of State, in a statement, said that the election was not free and fair [4] and the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office termed the election lacking the preconditions of democracy. [5] According to The Economist, through this election, Bangladesh effectively became a one-party state. [6]

The main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), demanded that the government hand over power to a neutral caretaker government before the January 2024 elections. [7] This was rejected by Hasina, who vowed that "Bangladesh will never allow an unelected government again". [8] Hasina's resistance to a caretaker government arose following the 2006–2008 crisis, during which a caretaker government assumed military control of the country and arrested a number of political leaders, including Hasina and Khaleda Zia. [9] Zia was sentenced to prison for five years in the on February 8, 2018, for her involvement in the Zia Orphanage corruption case. [10] The sentence was then modified to 10 years. [11] Zia’s successor as chair of the party, her son Tarique Rahman, was also found guilty of criminal conspiracy and multiple counts of murder for a grenade attack in 2004 that injured Hasina and killed 24 people. [12] He was sentenced to life in prison. As such, he was barred from running for office. [13] Zia was released by Shahabuddin following Hasina's resignation. [14]

Electoral system

The 350 members of the Jatiya Sangsad consist of 300 directly elected seats using first-past-the-post voting in single-member constituencies, and an additional 50 seats reserved for women. The reserved seats are elected proportionally by the elected members. Each parliament sits for a five-year term. [15]

Parties and alliances

Results

Alliance/ PartyPopular voteSeats
Votes%±pp ContestedWon+/−
Jatiya Oikya Front Bangladesh Nationalist Party
Total
Grand Alliance Awami League
Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal
Workers Party of Bangladesh
Total
Left Democratic Alliance Communist Party of Bangladesh
Socialist Party of Bangladesh
United Communist League of Bangladesh
Socialist Party of Bangladesh (Marxist)
Total
Jatiya Party (Ershad)
Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami
Islami Andolan Bangladesh
Others
IND
Total--

Surveys and polls

Opinion polls

Vote share projections
Polling agencyDate publishedSample sizeMargin of errorLead
AL BNP JP(E) LDA Jamaat Others
Seat projections
Polling agencyDate publishedSample sizeMargin of errorLead
AL BNP JP(E) LDA Jamaat Others

Exit polls

Vote share projections
Polling agencyDate publishedSample sizeMargin of errorLead
AL BNP JP(E) LDA Jamaat Others
Seat projections
Polling agencyDate publishedSample sizeMargin of errorLead
AL BNP JP(E) LDA Jamaat Others

See also

Notes

    Related Research Articles

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    References

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    9. "Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Arrested". NPR. 16 July 2007.
    10. "Minister: Khaleda Zia's release will be revoked if she participates in politics". Dhaka Tribune. June 11, 2023.
    11. "Zia Orphanage Graft Case: Khaleda's jail term raised to 10 years". The Daily Star. October 31, 2018.
    12. "Tarique Rahman acting chairman: BNP leader". The Daily Star. February 8, 2018.
    13. "Adequate data found to try Jamaat for war crimes". Bangladesh Post. June 11, 2023.
    14. "Who is Khaleda Zia, Sheikh Hasina's rival and former Bangladesh PM who was on 'deathbed' a few months ago". The Economic Times . 2024-08-06. Retrieved 2024-08-09.
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