Rapper-turned-politician Balendra “Balen” Shah and his Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) have delivered a dramatic upset in Nepal’s general election, positioning the party to form the next government after results announced Sunday toppled many long-standing political players.
Shah, 35, routed four-time former prime minister K P Sharma Oli in Jhapa-5 by roughly 50,000 votes, according to the Election Commission (EC). The official tally showed Shah with 68,348 votes to Oli’s 18,734. If sworn in, Shah would be Nepal’s youngest prime minister and the first from the Madhesi community to hold the post.
The RSP, founded in 2022 by Ravi Lamichhane, dominated the count: by 7 a.m. the party had taken 100 of the 129 seats declared. It swept Kathmandu, winning all 10 constituencies in the district and all 15 seats across the Kathmandu Valley (10 in Kathmandu, two in Bhaktapur and three in Lalitpur). Nationwide, the RSP was also leading in another 25 constituencies.
Traditional parties suffered heavy losses amid widespread voter demand for anti-corruption reforms, an end to nepotism and generational change. The Nepali Congress won 13 seats and led in three; the CPN-UML took seven and led in three; the Nepali Communist Party won six and led in one; the Shrama Shakti Party led in three; the Rastriya Prajatantra Party secured one seat; and one Independent also won. Turnout on March 5 was about 60 percent. Counting began late Thursday and continued across remaining areas.
India watched the vote closely, seeking stability to advance bilateral development ties. Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the people and government of Nepal, calling the election a historic milestone and pledging continued cooperation with Nepal’s new leadership.
Oli, who had been the UML’s prime-ministerial candidate, publicly congratulated Shah and wished him a smooth five-year term, sharing a 2022 photo of himself gifting a tabla to Shah after Shah’s earlier independent mayoral victory in Kathmandu.
The RSP had rallied behind Shah as its prime-ministerial candidate after launching its campaign in Janakpur. Branded by Shah as the “son of Madhesh,” the campaign used the slogan “Ab ki bar Balendra sarkar” (This time there will be Balendra’s government). In the Madhesh province — where 32 seats were contested across eight districts — the RSP won eight and led in 22 constituencies.
Ravi Lamichhane himself won Chitwan-2 decisively, collecting 54,402 votes to Mina Kumari Kharel’s 14,564, marking his third straight victory. Former prime minister and NCP leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda won Rukum Purba with 10,240 votes versus CPN-UML’s Lilamani Gautam at 3,462. Gyanendra Shahi of the RPP captured Jumla in Karnali province, becoming the lone pro-monarchy party MP.
Women secured ten seats in the new tally — nine from the RSP and one from the Nepali Congress.
Under the proportional representation ballot, the RSP led with 1,148,725 votes, followed by the Nepali Congress with 379,964; CPN-UML with 304,842; Nepali Communist Party with 139,005; RPP with 83,525; and SSP with 46,261. Nepal’s House of Representatives has 275 members: 165 elected by direct vote and 110 through proportional lists. Roughly 3,400 candidates contested the 165 direct seats and about 3,135 contested the 110 proportional seats.
Younger voters and Gen Z activism have helped reshape recent politics: street protests on September 8–9 last year played a role in removing Oli from power while he led a coalition with the Nepali Congress. Shah had been floated as a possible head of an interim government after Oli’s ouster but opted instead to run for a full parliamentary term, formally joining the RSP in January and becoming its prime-ministerial nominee.
Analysts and youth activists say anti-corruption, governance reforms, and a generational shift drove the RSP surge. Former MP and commentator Sunil Babu Pant described the result as a clear expression of public frustration with the old order and urged Shah to take a hard line on corruption while steering Nepal through complex geopolitical pressures by pursuing an independent foreign policy in the country’s national interest.
