HoR polls: 175 candidates withdraw names from closed list

KATHMANDU: A total of 175 candidates have withdrawn their names from the closed list under the proportional representation (PR) system for the upcoming House of Representatives (HoR) elections scheduled for March 5.

According to the Election Commission (EC), candidates representing 17 election symbols, including independent (single) symbols, withdrew their candidacies.

The Election Commission had fixed January 12, from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, as the deadline for withdrawing names from the closed list and had issued a public notice to that effect. Candidates were allowed to withdraw their names either in person or through a written request.

Assistant Spokesperson of the Commission, Kul Bahadur GC, said that 175 candidates from 17 election symbols withdrew their names within the stipulated time. He clarified that the withdrawals included candidates from political parties as well as those listed under single election symbols.

According to the Commission, the highest number of withdrawals, 110 candidates, came from the Loktantrik Samajwadi Party (LSP). GC said the withdrawals followed the party’s recent merger with other parties, prompting it to retract all previously submitted names from the closed list.

Similarly, 20 candidates from the Janamat Party, 12 from the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), six from Janadesh Party Nepal, and five from the CPN-UML withdrew their names. Four candidates each from the Maoist Centre and Rastra Nirman Dal Nepal also withdrew.

In addition, two candidates each from the Nepali Congress, Unnat Loktantrik Party, Nepali Communist Party, and Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) withdrew their candidacies.

Candidates representing the ‘Janto’ single election symbol from the United Democratic National Forum, United Citizen Party, Rastriya Mukti Party Nepal, and Janata Samajwadi Party also withdrew their names from the closed list.

The House of Representatives comprises 275 members, of whom 165 will be elected through the direct (first-past-the-post) system and 110 through the proportional representation system. The Commission has stated that necessary arrangements have been made to ensure inclusive representation in line with caste and demographic data from the latest census.