Nepal records low voter turnout of 61 per cent for the recent elections to the House of Representatives and Provincial Assembly

Kathmandu, Nov 21: Nepal has recorded a low voter turnout of 61 per cent for the elections to the House of Representatives and Provincial Assembly held on Sunday (Nov 20). Hours after the formal closure of polls the Nepal Election Commission in its briefing said that the number of voters executing stood lower than expected.

 

 

 

 

On Monday (Nov 21), as the ballot continued to pour out of the boxes, the results yet again signaled mixed results in the Himalayan nation with new faces taking on the front. According to Niraj Raj Joshi, a Nepali journalist, and political commentator, "There has been a stiff rise in candidatures from independent candidates along with the political parties. We can derive various reasons behind it, the political parties who were elected in an earlier election (2017) held after the promulgation of the constitution did not work as per the expectation of the people. Revolting against it the independents have come forward when it comes to the votes cast, the turnout is lesser in comparison to the earlier general election."

 

In the election, Nepali voters who turned out at polling stations stated that they voted in for change and development which only can be achieved through political stability. First held in 2017 in three phases, the Federal and Provincial Election of Nepal witnessed 68.7 per cent voter turnover. The Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) had secured nearly half the majority seats in the parliament. Chairman of CPN-UML, KP Sharma Oli following victory became Prime Minister after the three-tier election but the government fell before Oli could complete his three years in power.

 

 

 

 

 

The intra-party dispute led to the split of CPN-UML further leading the nation into a political crisis as Oli dissolved the parliament twice inviting a constitutional crisis. The incumbent government under the Prime Ministership of Sher Bahadur Deuba (Nepal Congress) which works as a caretaker government was formed in support of the CPN-Maoist Center and CPN-Unified Socialist - the splinter party of CPN-UML. On the election, the Nepali Congress, CPN-Maoist Center, CPN-Unified Socialist and Loktantrik Samajbadi forged an alliance while the opposition CPN-UML is contesting in few fronts with Rastriya Prajatantra Party and the Janata Samajbadi Party.

 

The Election Commission had set up 22,227 polling centers across the nation for its 18,879,570 eligible voters. There are a total of 2,412 candidates in the fray for first-past-the-post (FPTP) whereas 2,199 candidates from Proportionate Representation (PR) are vying to enter the 275-seat House of Representatives. A total of 165 members are elected from the FPTP system whereas 110 will make their way from PR system. For the Provincial Assembly, there are 3,224 candidates from FPTP and 3,708 candidates from proportionate seats. There are a total of 550 seats in all the 7 provincial assemblies of the nation out of which members on 330 seats would be elected from FPTP and 220 through PR system.