Early returns from Nepal’s general election suggest a dramatic political realignment, with the newcomer Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) leading in a large share of contests while established parties lag in preliminary counts. Founded in 2022 as a centrist-liberal force, the RSP ran on promises of transparency, digital modernization and better governance.
The vote was shaped by a wave of public demand for change after last year’s youth-led protests, which began over a proposed social media ban and broadened into nationwide anger over corruption and economic hardship. Those protests left dozens dead and produced episodes of violence, including several burned government buildings.
Nepal’s Election Commission reported that in the first 24 hours after polls closed the RSP had officially won three of the 165 open parliamentary seats and was leading in 110 more. By contrast, the Nepali Congress — the dominant party in the previous parliament — led in 13 races, and the Communist Party of Nepal, led by Sharma Oli, led in 11. A final official tally is expected in the coming days.
If current trends hold, the RSP could approach nearly a two-thirds majority in the 275-member parliament, a result that would reshape the country’s political landscape. The commission said roughly 3,400 candidates contested seats nationwide, with voter turnout near 59 percent in a country of about 30 million people.
Counting was described as peaceful by Election Commission spokesman Prakash Nyupane. Interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki, a 73-year-old former chief justice who returned from retirement to head the temporary government, also praised the calm conduct of the vote and called it decisive for Nepal’s future.
A high-profile symbol of the RSP surge is Balendra Shah — known as Balen — a 35-year-old former rapper who has become emblematic of the youth demand for new leadership. Shah is a leading contender for the prime ministership and ran a prominent race in Jhapa-5 against Sharma Oli, the 74-year-old former prime minister who was ousted amid the 2025 protests. Early counts in that constituency showed Shah with nearly five times Oli’s votes, underscoring broad voter dissatisfaction with established, older political figures.