Ex-rapper's party leads Nepal's first election since 2025 youth revolt

KATHMANDU — Preliminary results released Saturday showed the Rastriya Swatantra Party, led by rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah, in front in Nepal’s parliamentary election, the country’s first vote since last year’s youth-led uprising toppled the government. The party had won 60 of 165 directly elected seats and was leading in 61 more, according to Nepal’s Election Commission. Shah, 35, who won the 2022 Kathmandu mayoral race and became a central figure in the 2025 revolt, defeated former Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli in a head-to-head contest in a southeastern district, winning almost four times as many votes as the former leader.

The vote is the first electoral test of public sentiment since the 2025 protests — triggered by a government social media ban and fueled by anger over corruption and poor governance — killed dozens and forced Oli from power. The Rastriya Swatantra Party, founded only in 2022, is challenging Nepal’s two long-dominant parties: the Nepali Congress and the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist).

Shah defeats Oli directly

Shah, the party’s prime ministerial candidate, ran against Oli in a southeastern district and won by a wide margin, according to Associated Press reporting. Shah was a leading figure in the 2025 uprising that ousted Oli, and his campaign drew on widespread voter frustration with traditional political parties.

Shah highlighted health and education for poor Nepalis as key campaign themes.

Seat breakdown

Of the 165 directly elected seats, the Rastriya Swatantra Party had won 60 and was leading in 61 more as of Saturday. The 13 other announced seats went to the Nepal Congress party and two communist parties.

Nepal’s 275-member House of Representatives fills 165 seats through direct election. The remaining 110 seats are allocated through a proportional representation system, under which parties receive seats based on their share of the overall vote.

The election is widely seen as a three-way contest, according to the Associated Press, shaped by voter frustration over widespread corruption and demands for greater government accountability.

Vote counting and timeline

Vote counting was continuing in most constituencies Saturday. Final results are expected within two days, according to Nepal’s Election Commission. Ballot boxes from remote mountain villages in the northern parts of the country were still being collected by helicopter.

Background: the 2025 revolt

The Rastriya Swatantra, or National Independent, Party was founded in 2022, the same year Shah won the Kathmandu mayoral race. It gained significant support ahead of this election.

The 2025 protests that set the backdrop for this vote were initially triggered by a government social media ban and grew into a broader popular revolt against the government. Dozens were killed and hundreds injured when protesters attacked government buildings and police opened fire on them, according to the Associated Press.