Nepal Election Monitoring| Ep 10

Nepal’s 2026 Election: The Results and What Next?
________________The Election Commission Nepal (ECN) has finalized the results of the House of Representatives election held on March 5th, 2026, confirming outcomes from all 165 first-past-the-post (FPTP) constituencies, and allocating seats under the proportional representation (PR) system.Under the direct electoral system, the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) secured an overwhelming 125 seats, followed by the established parties Nepali Congress (NC) with 18 seats, CPN-UML with 9 seats, and the Communist Party of Nepal won 7 seats. Meanwhile, the newly formed party led by a former popular mayor of Dharan, the Shram Sanskriti Party won 3 seats, and the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) won 1 seat, while one independent candidate was also elected.

The ECN has also completed the allocation of 110 seats under the proportional representation system. According to the distribution, RSP received 57 seats, Nepali Congress 20 seats, CPN-UML 16 seats, Communist Party of Nepal 9 seats, Shram Sanskriti Party 4 seats, and RPP 4 seats. Out of 11,280,617 votes cast under the PR system, 10,835,025 votes were deemed valid. With the combined results of both FPTP and PR systems, the RSP has emerged as the largest party in the House of Representatives with 182 total seats, falling just two seats short of a two-thirds majority. The NC has become the second-largest party with 38 seats, followed by CPN-UML with 25 seats in third position. The Communist Party of Nepal has secured 16 seats, the Shram Sanskriti Party 7 seats, and the Rastriya Prajatantra Party 5 seats. These six parties have qualified as the national parties of Nepal after crossing the 3 percent threshold under the proportional representation system.

Following the completion of vote counting under both systems, the political process has now moved toward the formation of a new government. Election Commission officials said the process will formally begin after the Commission submits the final election results report to the President. The Commission aims to submit the final report by March 19, although minor technical delays could extend it by a day. Once the report is submitted, the President will formally call for government formation. According to the Federal Parliament Secretariat, the country is likely to have a new government by March 24. As the largest party with a clear majority, the RSP is expected to elect its parliamentary party leader and stake a claim to form the government. The party had campaigned with senior leader Balendra Shah as its prime ministerial candidate.
Since the adoption of the Constitution in 2015, no single party had secured an outright majority, and previous governments were formed through coalition arrangements under other provisions of Article 76. This will be the first time since then that a government will be formed under Article 76(1), which provides that the leader of the parliamentary party holding a majority in the House of Representatives shall be appointed the Prime Minister.

The current election has also challenged the long-held perception, including from experts, that Nepal’s mixed electoral system, combining FPTP and PR, makes it difficult for a single party to secure a majority. With 182 seats, RSP has nearly achieved a two-thirds majority, breaking the trend seen in previous elections since the adoption of the mixed system after the 2006 political change.

Under constitutional provisions, the first meeting of the House of Representatives must be convened within 30 days of the final results. Before the session begins, newly elected members will take the oath of office. The senior-most member will first take the oath from the President and subsequently administer the oath to other members. The newly formed government will then be required to obtain a vote of confidence in the House within 30 days of its formation.

The 2026 House of Representatives election marks a major shift in Nepal’s political landscape, with the RSP emerging as the clear majority and nearing a two-thirds threshold, challenging the trend of coalition governments under the mixed electoral system. However, the results also suggest a relatively weak opposition, which could reduce parliamentary checks but also allow smoother policymaking if strong democratic norms are upheld. As the country moves toward the formation of a new government that carries the youth’s mandate, public expectations, especially from the youth, remain high for stronger governance, accountability, and meaningful reforms. The coming weeks will therefore be crucial in determining how this new political mandate translates into leadership, democratic practice, and policy direction for the country.