LAGOS, Nigeria(VOICE OF NAIJA)- Rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah scored a dramatic victory in Nepal’s parliamentary elections, toppling former prime minister KP Sharma Oli and positioning his Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) for a historic majority.
Nepal awaited the final results on Wednesday, with only two percent of votes left to count, as the 35-year-old former rapper emerged as the central figure in one of the country’s most startling political turnarounds. Starting his political journey from the Mayor’s office to the seat of the Prime Minister, Shan secured a commanding lead for his centrist Rastriya Swatantra Party, signaling a critical shift in Nepali politics.
The March 5 parliamentary elections, the first since youth-led anti-corruption protests toppled the previous government last September, underscored a generational demand for change. The “Ma Nepal Haseko” crooner unseated veteran four-time Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli in his own constituency, a result widely shared on social media as voters recreated Shah’s celebratory dance moves during the polls.
The lower house of Nepal’s parliament, the 275-member House of Representatives, saw 165 seats determined by direct elections and 110 via proportional representation (PR). RSP dominated the direct vote, claiming 125 of 165 seats, while capturing nearly half of the PR ballots with roughly 200,000 votes still pending.
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“We are close to finishing the counting now. We will have the final number of PR seats soon,” said Election Commission spokesman Narayan Prasad Bhattarai, speaking to AFP.
Current tallies show the RSP poised for a landslide, potentially winning 176 seats, just short of the 183 needed for a supermajority. Final counts may change slightly if votes for smaller, under-threshold parties are excluded.
Constitutional expert Bipin Adhikari noted that forming a government could take over a week, noting, “Once the commission submits its report to the president, he will invite RSP lawmakers to select a prime ministerial candidate, after which the appointment occurs,” he said.
Meanwhile, traditional powerhouses faced major losses: the Nepali Congress won only 18 direct seats, and the Marxist-led faction of the defeated Oli secured nine. With a socially active, youthful electorate behind him, Balendra Shah is on the verge of becoming Nepal’s next Prime Minister.
