KATHMANDU, NOVEMBER 17
The Election Commission has completed almost all its preparations for November 20 parliamentary and provincial elections, the silence period for which starts at midnight today.
Chief Election Commissioner Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya said at a press conference today that all 80,567,500 ballot papers - 39,962,500 ballot papers for election to the House of Representatives and provincial assemblies under the firstpast-the-post system and 40,605,000 ballot papers for provincial and parliamentary election under proportional representation system - have been dispatched to polling centres.
Thapaliya said chief election commissioners of India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Maldives and representatives from 18 diplomatic bodies based in Kathmandu will observe the election process. As many as 7,207 representatives from 44 national organisations and 12 representatives from two international organisations will also observe the election.
As of today, the EC has issued identity cards to 7,500 observers. A total of 2,46,960 government employees have been deployed for poll duty.
Security personnel have also reached polling centres. The EC has made provisions for deploying additional security personnel at any polling centre within 30 minutes.
Polling officers will hold an all party meeting and issue necessary notices to prohibit sale of liquor during the silence period and to prevent people from carrying any type of weapons.
The EC has directed the government employees to make polling centres easily accessible to new mothers, pregnant women, and incapacitated voters. The EC has also directed government employees to ensure that nobody organises any mass meeting or discussion as long as vote counting is on.
During the silence period candidates, parties, and ordinary citizens are prohibited from posting any message on social media soliciting votes.
Poll stats
• A total of 17,988,570 voters, including 9,140,806 males are eligible to vote
• There are 10,892 polling centres and 22,227 polling booths across the country
• A total of 450,000 temporary voters will cast their votes under the proportional representation system from 141 temporary polling centres or nearby polling centres
• There are 2,412 candidates in the House of Representatives election race under the first-past-thepost election system contesting 165 seats
• There 2,199 candidates contesting under the PR election system for 110 HoR seats
• There are 3,224 candidates who are contesting provincial assembly elections under the FPTP system
• As many as 3,708 candidates are trying their luck under the PR election system
A version of this article appears in the print on November 18, 2022 of The Himalayan Times.
