Kathmandu: Nepalese people went to the polls today with hopes of change in the country after nationwide protests led by young people left 77 dead in September last year.
According to Thai News Agency, the Election Commission announced that polling stations will be open from 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM local time (1 hour and 15 minutes behind Thailand time), and vote counting will begin immediately. Trends in the results are expected to become visible by Friday, but it may take at least a week to know the full results. This is because 19 million eligible voters out of a total population of 30 million will elect 275 members of parliament: 165 through direct election and 110 through proportional representation. There are over 3,400 candidates from 65 parties.
Nepal, bordered by China and India, has suffered from political instability for decades, with 32 governments in the past 35 years. Its economy is largely agricultural, employment conditions are dire, and infrastructure problems are compounded by widespread corruption. The final straw came when the government ordered the closure of social media platforms, igniting nationwide protests led by Gen Z, resulting in deaths. This led to the Prime Minister's resignation and today's elections.