A man shows the ink mark on his thumb after voting during the general election in Kathmandu, Nepal, March 5, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Reuters
Nepal, which went to polls on Thursday morning (March 5, 2026), the first since a violent Gen Z protest that toppled the K P Sharma Oli-led government last year, recorded a turnout of about six per cent till 9:30 a.m., according to the Election Commission.
Also read: Nepal general elections 2026 live updates
Nepalese citizens on Thursday morning (March 5, 2026) started to reach polling booths in all 165 constituencies amid tight security to cast their vote in the crucial general election.
More than 18.9 million eligible Nepalese will be exercising their franchise to elect the 275-member House of Representatives from among the 3,406 candidates vying for 165 seats under direct voting and 3,135 candidates vying for 110 seats through proportionate voting.
The voting started at 7 a.m. and will conclude at 5 p.m. The counting will start immediately after the ballot boxes are collected.
The Election Commission said about 6% of eligible voters had cast their ballots by 9:30 a.m.
Voting is ongoing smoothly across the country with minor incidents in a very few places, Election Commissioner Sagun Shumsher Rana was quoted as saying by the Kathmandu Post.
Nepal Police confirmed that apart from minor disagreements at a few locations, no serious problems had occurred.
Addressing a press meet on the eve of the polls, Acting Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari on Wednesday (March 4, 2026) had said that all preparations for the election had been completed and urged voters to participate actively and enthusiastically in the democratic exercise.
Published – March 05, 2026 08:11 am IST
