Nepal centrist party leads with potential landslide victory

In direct parliamentary elections that concluded Sunday, Nepal’s centrist Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), led by rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah, emerged as the overwhelming winner. Preliminary results indicated that the 35-year-old had secured a majority and was set to secure an unprecedented landslide victory.

Shah’s RSP enjoyed significant support in both direct voting and proportional representation contests. These elections marked Nepal’s first since violent protests last September forced the ousting of a Marxist-led government, which included veteran Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, a 74-year-old who had served four terms before his abrupt downfall.

On Saturday, Shah defeated Oli himself in his constituency, highlighting his meteoric rise. Beyond securing direct election victories across multiple districts, Shah’s rapid political ascent from mayor of the capital to potential prime minister underscored one of Nepal’s most transformative electoral results.

The September 2025 protests by young people demanding an end to corruption and economic struggles began modestly but rapidly escalated into a nationwide movement. The demonstrations, driven largely by Gen Z grievances, initially protested against a social media ban but soon expanded to encompass broader issues like governance failures and low living standards.

Thursday’s elections brought in a new 275-member House of Representatives, Nepal’s lower legislative chamber. The assembly included 185 directly elected members and an additional 110 chosen through proportional representation methods.