Vote counting in Nepal enters final phase, Balen led party dominates the parliament heading for two-third majority

KATHMANDU: Vote counting under the First-Past-the-Post category of the House of Representatives has entered the final phase, with the Balen-led Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) dominating the parliament. The party is heading for a two-thirds majority as it also dominates the Proportional Representation (PR) vote count, as per the latest update from the Election Commission.

As per the latest update from the Election Commission, the RSP has won 124 seats under the FPTP category while maintaining a lead in one more constituency. The Nepali Congress has secured 17 seats and is leading in one constituency.

The CPN-UML has won eight seats and is leading in one constituency, while the Nepali Communist Party has secured seven seats. The Shram Sanskriti Party has won three seats, while the Rastriya Prajatantra Party has secured one seat. Independent candidate Mahabir Pun has also been elected to the House of Representatives.

On March 5, voters cast their ballots to elect 165 candidates under the First-Past-the-Post (FPTP) category and for 110 seats under the Proportional Representation (PR) category. With more than half of the votes counted under the Proportional Representation (PR) category in the House of Representatives election, the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) has secured nearly 50 per cent of the votes.

So far, 8.122 million votes have been counted out of the total 10.9 million votes cast under the PR category. Till 9 am (NST), the RSP has secured 3,916,502 votes, followed by the Nepali Congress with 1,319,879 votes and the CPN-UML (Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist), led by KP Sharma Oli, with 1,119,841 votes.

In the House of Representatives election, political parties must secure at least 3 per cent of the total PR votes to qualify for seats under the proportional representation system. Based on the current vote count, only RSP, Nepali Congress, CPN-UML, NCP and RPP appear likely to cross the threshold.

If the vote share remains unchanged until the final count, the RSP is projected to win around 60 seats under the PR system. Similarly, the Nepali Congress may secure 20 seats, the CPN-UML 17 seats, the Maoist Centre eight seats, and the RPP five seats. Adding the projected 60 PR seats, the RSP could secure around 185 seats in the 275-member House of Representatives.

A party needs 184 seats to command a two-thirds majority in the House. If the current voting trend continues, the RSP appears on course to secure that threshold. (ANI)