DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Bangladesh is holding a parliamentary election that could reshape the country after years of political instability. It’s the first election since former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted by deadly protests in 2024, and a clear outcome is vital for stable governance.
Here are some facts and figures about Thursday’s election:
127 million eligible voters, some 5 million of them first-timers
More than 127 million people are eligible to vote in the nation of some 170 million people. There are 2,028 candidates contesting parliamentary seats nationwide.
The electorate includes about 64.8 million male voters, 62.9 million female voters, and 1,234 transgender voters, according to official data. Young people were key participants in the 2024 uprising and are expected to be influential in the election: Some 5 million first-time voters are eligible.
800,000 staffers at polling stations
The election is being conducted across 42,779 polling stations, with around 800,000 officials deployed to oversee the process. The interim administration led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus has stated that it is committed to holding elections that are free, fair and peaceful. Some 900,000 police and other security officers have been deployed.
To help ensure this, around 500 foreign observers and journalists will be present, including observers from the European Union and the Commonwealth, to which Bangladesh belongs.
A five-year term government will be made
Bangladesh’s national legislature comprises 350 lawmakers. Of these, 300 are elected directly from single-member constituencies, while an additional 50 seats are reserved for women. Each Parliament serves a five-year term.
Voting is taking place in 299 constituencies, with polling in one seat postponed following the death of a candidate and to be held at a later date.
It’s largely a 2-way contest
Some 50 parties are contesting the polls. Hasina’s former ruling Awami League party is banned from the election.
The election will be largely a two-way contest between the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and an 11-party alliance headed by the Jamaat-e-Islami, the country’s largest Islamist party.
The BNP’s Tarique Rahman, who is the son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, is a contender to lead the next government.
Challenging the BNP is an 11-party alliance led by the Jamaat-e-Islami, a conservative religious group. A new party formed by the uprising student leaders called National Citizen Party, or NCP, is part of this alliance.
The past 3 elections were controversial
The election is the 13th since the country gained independence in 1971. The elections in 2014, 2018 and 2024 under Hasina’s administration were controversial as they were widely believed to be rigged in Hasina’s favor or were boycotted by her major opponents.
Bangladesh has a first-past-the-post multiparty electoral system in which the candidate who receives the most votes wins. To secure a majority, a party or coalition must get 151 seats.