Overview
- The Election Commission recorded 3,484 nominees for 165 first-past-the-post seats, including 3,088 men and 395 women.
- Four former prime ministers entered the race: K P Sharma Oli in Jhapa-5, Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ in Rukum East, Madhav Kumar Nepal in Rautahat-1, and Baburam Bhattarai in Gorkha-2.
- A marquee contest is set in Jhapa-5, where former Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah of the Rastriya Swatantra Party will face K P Sharma Oli.
- Four caretaker ministers resigned to run: Mahabir Pun in Myagdi as an independent, Jagadish Kharel in Lalitpur-2 for the Rastriya Swatantra Party, Bablu Gupta in Siraha-1, and Kulman Ghising in Kathmandu-3 for the Ujyaalo Nepal Party.
- The early election follows last year’s Gen-Z protests, with roughly 18,903,689 eligible voters and about 125 registered parties reflecting a more fragmented field.