Nepal Polls: Young challengers take on veteran leaders as nation heads to high-stakes vote

Nepal election pits veterans against young rivals

Nepal has established polling centres ahead of Thursday’s parliamentary election, one of the country’s most closely watched votes since the end of the civil war in 2006 and six months after anti-corruption protests brought down the government.

The Himalayan nation will elect a new parliament to replace the interim administration that has governed its 30 million people since the September 2025 uprising, in which at least 77 people were killed.

In Kathmandu’s Durbar Square — a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its pagoda temples and historic architecture — election officials set up polling booths that are scheduled to open shortly after dawn on Thursday.

Authorities have also deployed helicopters to transport ballot materials to remote and snow-covered mountainous regions across Nepal, home to eight of the world’s ten highest peaks, including Mount Everest.

“All activities are complete,” Chief Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari told reporters on Wednesday.

“All the necessary ballot papers, boxes and other election materials have been delivered.”

Sushila Karki, the interim prime minister, has called on citizens to cast their votes “without any fear”.

This election cycle has shifted political attention from the capital to the fertile farming plains south of Kathmandu, where all three leading candidates for prime minister are contesting seats — marking a change from previous polls that were centred largely on the capital.

One key battleground is the usually quiet eastern town of Jhapa, where two major political rivals are facing off in a closely watched direct contest.

KP Sharma Oli, the 74-year-old Marxist leader ousted as prime minister last year and seeking a return to power, is being challenged in his home constituency by former Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah, a 35-year-old rapper-turned-politician.

'High-risk area'

Shah, from the centrist Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), has cast himself as a symbol of youth-driven political change, encouraging voters to "ring the bell" of change, in reference to the party symbol.

While nearly 19 million voters are registered nationwide, the Jhapa-5 constituency -- with around 163,000 voters -- will determine whether Oli secures his seat or whether Shah enters parliament.

"This is a high-risk area -- the competition is between the popular candidates," said Jhapa chief election officer Bidur Kumar Karki, saying police and soldiers have been deployed.

"We feel that this place is secure and there has been no incident... I would request all voters to actively participate."

Also in the race as aspiring prime minister is Gagan Thapa, 49, the new head of the country's oldest party, Nepali Congress, who has told AFP he wanted to end the "old age" club of revolving veteran leaders.

Thapa is running in the Sarlahi constituency, a mainly farming district bordering India.

More than half of Nepal's population lives in the rural plains of the southern Madhesh districts in the lush "Terai" grasslands fed by Himalayan snowmelt.

Younger candidates

The election has seen a wave of younger candidates promising to tackle Nepal's woeful economy, challenging veteran politicians who have dominated for two decades and argue that their experience guarantees stability and security.

It has also seen a shift by key candidates wanting to show their national leadership potential by running in seats outside the capital.

"Lasting peace is possible only through national unity, and for that, a sense of ownership in the southern belt is vital," Indra Adhikari, a writer on politics and security affairs, told AFP.

The key figures -- Oli, Shah and Thapa -- will all still vote in the capital, with voting to open on Thursday at 7:00 am (0115 GMT), and close at 5:00 pm.

Voters will elect 275 members of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of parliament -- 165 directly, with a further 110 chosen via a party-list proportional representation.

Analysts say the vote is unlikely to deliver an outright majority for any single party.

It could take several days for full results -- and longer if negotiations for a coalition government prove tricky.

Chhabilal Koirala, 61, a farmer in Jhapa, sought to temper expectations.

"The young show some hope, yes," he told AFP.

"But when they win and rise to power, my worry is they will be the same as the old ones -- they won't do anything."

(With AP inputs)