Bangladesh election 2026: Date, seats, key parties, alliances and constituencies
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Tarique Rahman (C), Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairman and election candidate waves to supporters upon his arrival at a rally on the final day of campaigning ahead of the country's general election in Dhaka on February 9, 2026. Photograph: (AFP)
Bangladesh votes on February 12, 2026, with 127 million voters choosing 300 MPs. Here’s everything about parties, alliances, key seats and the July Charter referendum.
Bangladesh is going to hold elections on February 12, 2026. More than one and a half years have passed since the violent protests that resulted in the ousting of the Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina. Since then, the country has been governed by the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus. He is now facilitating the election in the capacity of the Chief Advisor and is also overseeing a referendum on the July Charter. July Charter finds its roots in the protests of 2024, and the Constitution Reform Commission, which is proposing anti corruption mechanism, electoral reforms, among other policies to remove the “autocratic structures” from Bangladesh's politics.
When is the Bangladesh election?
About 127 million registered voters are going to cast their votes for 1,981 candidates. The polling will begin from 7.30 am to 4.30 pm, on February 12, 2026. Counting of votes will commence from 4 pm on February 12, and the result is expected to be announced by the Election Commission in the early morning of February 13.
How many seats are there in Bangladesh's parliament?
There are 350 seats in the Jatiya Sangsad ( Parliament of Bangladesh), each of whom serve five year terms. Among them, 300 will be directly elected, and 50 others are reserved for women. They will be proportionally elected by the coalitions and parties, depending on their respective vote shares. The majority mark is 151; any party or coalition which gets 151 seats wins the election.
Also Read: Who is Tasnim Jara? Oxford-educated doctor takes on Bangladesh's politics as independent candidate
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Key parties and alliances in the Bangladesh election
The two leading alliances are the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its coalition of 10 parties; Jamaat-e-Islami (JIB) and its coalition of 11 parties, including National Citizen Party (NCP), which emerged from the July protest. The BNP is led by Tarique Rahman, the son of the late former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, and Shafiqur Rahman is leading the JIB and its alliance. Apart from the two major power blocs, Islami Andolan Bangladesh broke away from the JIB and the Jatiya Party, an ally of Hasina's Awami league is running independently after the ban. The Jatiya Party chief GM Quader is leading an alliance of 18 parties, the National Democratic Front (NDF). Then there is the Left coalition of Democratic United Front (DUF), comprising mainly the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) and the Socialist Party of Bangladesh (SPB) and is led by Kazi Sajjad Zahir Chandan. The BNP is competing in 288 seats, the JIB and 11-party alliance is competing in 298 seats, and the Islamic Andolan will be contesting 253 seats. According to a survey by the US-based International Republican Institute, BNP is tentatively leading the polls with 33 per cent respondent, closely followed by the Jammat.
Key constituencies in the Bangladesh election
BNP Chief Tarique Rahman has filed nomination from the Dhaka 17 constituency after returning from an exile of 17 years, and BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has submitted papers from Thakurgaon-1. JIB chief Shafiqur Rahman filed nomination from Dhaka-15, and JIB Secretary General Mia Golam Porwar filed nomination from Khulna-5. JIB-backed Hindu candidate Krishna Nandy submitted his nomination from Khulna-1. The Jaitya Party chief GM Quader is contesting from Rangpur-3, while Secretary General Barrister Shamim Haider Patwary is contesting from Gaibandha-1 and Gaibandha-5. The DUF leadership, Kazi Sajjad Zahir Chandan, is contesting from Narsingdi-4. Historically, Gopalganj-3 & Faridpur have been a stronghold of the Awami League. Parbatya Chattogram Jana Samhati Samiti, a regional party of Jumma people (Tibetian Budhhist) are contesting from the three constituencies of Chittagong Hill Tract. Dhaka 12 is the constituency with largest number of candidates 15, Ghazipur 2 is the largest constituency with 804,333 voters.
