BAJHANG: In the ongoing vote counting in Bajhang by-election, CPN-UML’s Daman Bhandari has surged ahead, maintaining the lead.

According to the latest tally, UML’s Bhandari has secured 2,087 votes so far while CPN-Maoist Center’s Janak Bahadur Budha has garnered 1,313 votes.

Likewise, Nepali Congress candidate Abhishek Bahadur Singh has garnered 1289 votes and Dil Bahadur Singh, candidate of the Unified Socialist Party has got 855 votes as of now.

The by-election, conducted on Saturday, saw a turnout of 30,328 out of 61,748 eligible voters, marking a 49.12 percent overall participation rate.