Voting for the second phase of the elections for the house of representative and seven provincial assembly started Thursday morning at 7 am local time in 45 districts in the bottom half of the country and leaders of major political parties have expressed confidence of their victory.
Speaking after the polls closed, Chief Election Commissioner Ayodhi Prasad Yadav put the preliminary voter turn out at 67 per cent. More than 12 million people were eligible to vote for the second phase of the election.
The first round of elections for the mountainous 32 districts were held on November 26, 2017, where 65 per cent of eligible voters had turned out to vote.
Over 15,300 polling stations were open nationwide amid heavy security presence. However, clashes between rival party members and explosions have also been reported by local media.
Maiya Rai, 33, was one of the voters at a local school in Bhaktapur. She says she want to choose a leader who could address problems in the country.
"This election is very important to elect the right leader to facilitate the demands and needs of the country and the people," she says. "There is no place for those who do not work for the people."
According to the Election commissioner, two polling centers in Western Nepali district of Agrakhanchi had their voting postponed due to violence.
After casting his vote early, Nepal’s Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba said the elections will ensure the country remains prosperous and democratic.
Nepal's Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba casting his vote on 7 December 2017. Source: Smriti Dhungana
Speaking to local media present in his constituency, Deuba also expressed confidence in his party winning the election.
Similarly, former Prime Minister and Maoist leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal said the latest elections will bring “stability and prosperity” to the country.
He also emphasized that his party’s alliance with Nepal Communist party UML for the election will ensure left majority government in the country.
However, an alliance of a relatively new party in Nepal’s political history could also manage to steal support from major parties.
Maoist leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal voting during federal election in Nepal on 7 December 17. Source: Smriti Dhungana
Bibeksheel Sajha party is an alliance between new political parties with a former BBC journalist as one of their coordinators.
In the second phase of the elections, the candidates are vying for 128 seats for House of Representatives and 256 seats for provincial assembly.
1,663 candidates are vying in the race for House of Representatives under the First-Past-the-Post (FPtP) electoral system among which 1,533 are male candidates whereas 130 are female candidates.
For provincial assembly, more than two thousand eight hundred candidates are racing for the First-Past-the-Post (FPtP) electoral system among which 2,599 are male candidates whereas 220 are female candidates.
Whereas for 110 seats for House of Representatives and 220 seats for Provincial Assembly under Proportional Representation (PR) system, 5,838 candidates are contesting.
The Election commission has said that the results of the parliamentary and provincial assembly elections under the first-past-the-post (FPtP) electoral system will come within five days of the start of the vote count.
Likewise, the results of the election under the proportional representation (PR) system will come within eight days.
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