Nepal will go to the polls on March 5 to elect a new government. Nearly 19 million people will take part in the ballot for Nepal’s House of Representatives. The general election will be the first that the country has held since the youth-led anti-corruption protests toppled the government in September 2025.
The republic has been run by an interim government led by former chief justice Sushila Karki, since the student revolt. This election will be Nepal’s 9th parliamentary election since the first one was held in 1959.
The Himalayan state has what is called a mixed electoral system, which was introduced in its 2015 constitution.
There are several notable politicians who would bear watching out for. Besides the leaders of the traditional parties, Balendra Shah, the 35-year-old former mayor of Nepal’s capital Kathmandu, is one of them. Better known as Balen, the former rapper is taking on the country’s former prime minister KP Sharma Oli who, resigned last September amid mounting public anger at long-entrenched corruption and social inequality in the Himalayan republic.
Most political parties have put particular focus on issues such as better governance, fighting corruption and reducing employment in their manifestos, which is being widely seen as a recognition of the frustrations that led to the toppling of the previous government.
The campaign is heavily focused on the demands of the “Gen Z movement”, focusing on Accountability including probing assets of public officials and ending endemic corruption; Employment, addressing the mass exodus of youth seeking work abroad by promising job creation; and Structural Reform where proposals include directly elected executives, term limits for Prime Ministers, and decentralisation of power.
The main political parties participating in these elections are;
Nepali Congress: The party is fighting 2026 elections under the leadership of Gagan Thapa. The party’s campaign focused on the new generation taking over the leadership of the party and their image as a “renewed” party. The party’s manifesto called for structural reform centered on good governance, administrative efficiency, and strict term limits. It proposed a one-term limit for the President, two terms for the Prime Minister and chief ministers, three for ministers, and a single term for party list MPs.
CPN (UML): The party held its 11th general convention on 18 December 2025 and re-elected K. P. Sharma Oli as the party’s chairman. Subsequently, Oli was also declared as the party’s candidate for the prime minister’s post. The party’s manifesto promised a welfare system with comprehensive social security nets.
Nepali Communist Party: The party was formed with the merger of CPN (Maoist Centre), CPN (Unified Socialist) and eight other left-wing groups. The party unveiled its manifesto on 10 February, which focused on good governance, employment creation, social welfare, and institutional reform.
Rastriya Swatantra Party: The party signed an agreement to bring in independent Kathmandu mayor Balen Shah, who in 2025 led the Gen Z protests, into the party and declared him as the candidate for prime minister from the party.
The party’s manifesto advocates constitutional amendments and institutional reforms aimed at streamlining the bureaucracy. The party proposed a transition to a directly elected executive and a fully proportional parliament, alongside a separation of powers that would prevent legislators from serving as cabinet members.
Rastriya Prajatantra Party: The party’s manifesto calls for a return to a constitutional monarchy, restoration of a Sanatan Hindu state with religious liberty, and scrapping the federal system in favour of a two-tiered governance structure consisting of a central government and strong, non-partisan local governments.
People’s Socialist Party Nepal: Loktantrik Samajwadi Party – Nepal, Terai Madesh Loktantrik Party and Janata Pragatisheel Party merged with the party ahead of the nomination deadline. This party released a 27-point manifesto on 26 January 2026 that focused on strengthening the federal structure. It advocated implementing a federal model based on the 2012 High-Level State Restructuring Commission’s report to ensure ethnic identity. The manifesto called for constitutional amendments incorporating demands from the Madhesh and Janajati movements, as well as the 2025 Gen Z protests.
Pragatisheel Loktantrik Party: The party was formed by leaders of CPN (Maoist Centre) that disagreed with the formation of Nepali Communist Party along with Nepal Socialist Party (Naya Shakti) led by former prime minister Baburam Bhattarai and former chief whip of Rastriya Swatantra Party, Santosh Pariyar. The party’s manifesto calls for a transition to a directly elected presidential system, direct elections for provincial heads and a fully proportional electoral system. The party proposed limiting the federal parliament to legislative duties and forming a cabinet chosen by the executive head.
Ujyaalo Nepal Party: The party was formed after the elections were announced. On 15 February 2026, the party released its election manifesto, which aims for a “Development Decade”. The party proposed a significant reduction in the downsizing administration, advocating for decreasing federal legislators to 201 and provincial legislators to 330, alongside directly elected chief ministers and non-partisan local elections.
In Nepal, the electoral system follows dual system Some seats are decided by First Past The Post (FPTP), meaning whoever wins the most votes wins the seat. The second system is that of Proportional Representation (PR), which considers the proportion of votes cast for a political party. A total of 165 seats will be filled via the FPTP system, while the remaining 110 seats will be elected through PR.
The idea of having both systems was to ensure inclusion as well as proportional representation across society. The system makes it difficult for one party to win outright so whoever comes top in the election will most likely need to govern in a coalition.
This election has important geopolitical ramifications too. Neighbouring India, has had a fractious relationship with former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli in the past. This is primarily because Oli had actively pursued a closer relationship with China. The US too is believed to be keenly watching election, because of nepal’s strategic position in the Himalayas.
China has a major influence in Nepal and will be watching the polls closely, as it hopes that any future government is supportive of its interests in the country, including the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Nepal is integrated with cross-border infrastructure in both directions: power lines from hydropower dams feed electricity to India, while China connects through its Belt and Road Initiative over the Himalayas via Tibet, and has made investments in airports and railways.
For nearly two decades, Nepal’s political landscape was dominated by veteran leaders,- many of them former Maoist insurgents — who took turns in power since the end of a 10-year civil war in 2006.
Last September’s unrest erupted as youth protests against a brief social media ban, but was fuelled by a far wider anger over economic stagnation and corruption.
Whoever prevails will become Nepal’s 16th Prime Minister in less than two decades, underscoring the recurring political instability that has marked the Himalayan nation since the monarchy was abolished in 2008.