On 5 March 2026, early parliamentary elections were held in Nepal to elect the 275 members of the House of Representatives. The elections had originally been scheduled for September 2025. They were triggered by nationwide youth protests against widespread corruption. These protests had, among other things, led to the resignation of Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli.

Young voters now appear to have cast their veto at the ballot box: the 35-year-old rapper Balendra Shah has defeated former Nepalese Prime Minister Sharma KP Oli in his constituency. He has thus come one step closer to his goal of becoming Nepal’s next prime minister. The Nepalese Election Commission confirmed on 7 March 2026 that Balendra Shah received 68,348 votes, whilst Oli managed to secure only 18,734 votes. Shah’s Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) now appears to be well on its way to winning the parliamentary elections.

In the Dolpa constituency, Dhan Bahadur Budha won by a clear margin. The 51-year-old will now take his seat as a representative in the House of Representatives in Kathmandu. He has previously been supportive of the Tapriza School, and we naturally hope that in his work in Kathmandu he will keep the welfare of his home district in mind and represent its interests.

Almost 18.9 million people were registered to vote. More than 3,400 candidates from 68 parties stood in the election.