KATHMANDU — A new political force led by a former rapper appears poised for a decisive win in Nepal’s parliamentary election, according to results released by the Election Commission.
The Rastriya Swatantra Party, founded four years ago and led by Balendra Shah, had won 103 of the 165 directly elected seats and was leading in 21 more constituencies in provisional results published Sunday. Other parties and independents had taken 27 seats, while officials continued counting votes with final tallies expected later in the week.
Shah, a rapper-turned-mayor who captured Kathmandu’s 2022 mayoral race, emerged as the party’s prime ministerial candidate and a national figure during the Gen Z–led protests last year that toppled long-standing leadership. He notably defeated former prime minister Khadga Prasad Oli in Jhapa and was photographed receiving his victory certificate there.
Nepal’s lower house, the House of Representatives, fills 165 seats by direct election and another 110 by proportional representation for a 275-member chamber. The Rastriya Swatantra Party also led the proportional vote with roughly 51 percent, which would give it a commanding overall majority if final results hold. A majority requires support from half the lower house.
If confirmed, the RSP’s surge would displace the two parties that have long dominated Nepali politics: the Nepali Congress and the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist). Local newspapers described the outcome as historic, with front pages calling it a major political shift.
Supporters celebrated in many constituencies with garlands, scarves and traditional markings. Party leaders, however, urged restraint and asked candidates and supporters to avoid large victory processions in respect for the dozens who died during last year’s protests.
Those protests began after a social media ban and grew into mass demonstrations over corruption and governance failures. The unrest involved attacks on government buildings and clashes with police, leaving dozens dead and hundreds wounded.