MP’s vote to be equivalent to 79 votes

Kathmandu, September 14

The government today registered a bill relating to the election of the president and the vice-president, proposing weightage of 79 for a federal lawmaker’s vote and 48 for

that of a provincial assembly member.

An electoral college comprises 884 members — 334 members of federal Parliament (275- member House of Representatives and 59-member National Assembly)  and 550 members of provincial assemblies   (330 members elected under the  first-past-the-post electoral system and 220 members elected under proportional representation electoral system).

According to the proposed bill, total population of the country (26,494,504 based on 2011 census) divided by the strength of electoral college in the federal Parliament (334), divided by 1,000 yields the weightage of a federal lawmaker’s vote, i.e. 79.

Similarly, the total population divided by total number of provincial assembly members (550), divided by 1,000 yields the weightage of a provincial assembly’s vote, i.e. 48.

Effectively, it means that a federal lawmaker represents a population of 79,000, whereas a provincial assembly member represents a population of 48,000. It also means that a vote cast by a federal lawmaker will be equivalent to 79 votes, whereas a vote cast by a member of provincial assemblies will be equivalent to 48 votes.

According to the bill, formation of electoral college for presidential polls will not be affected even if the seat of any lawmaker or member of provincial assemblies falls vacant or election to any provincial assembly does not take place.

The bill adds that candidates for the president and vice-president will have to have 25 members of the electoral college as proposers and 25 as seconders.

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