Balen Shah Defeats KP Sharma Oli by Huge Margin, Set to Become Nepal’s Prime Minister
Kathmandu mayor’s dramatic political rise continues as his party heads toward a parliamentary majority
Kathmandu: Former rapper and Mayor of Kathmandu, Balen Shah, has won the parliamentary election from the Jhapa-5 constituency, defeating former Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli, according to the Election Commission of Nepal.
Official results show that Shah secured 68,348 votes, while Oli trailed far behind with 18,734 votes. With this victory, Shah has confirmed his place in the lower house of parliament, the House of Representatives of Nepal, and is set to become the next Prime Minister of Nepal.
Shah is a senior leader of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), which has recorded a major success in the elections. According to the Election Commission, the party—founded about four years ago—has already won 59 seats in the First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) category and is leading in 62 other seats, placing it on track to secure a clear majority in parliament.
Party leaders have repeatedly assured the public that there is no internal conflict over the prime ministerial position. First-ranking Vice Chairperson D. P. Aryal said the party received strong voter support because of its top leaders, including Rabi Lamichhane and Balen Shah, confirming that Shah will serve as the parliamentary leader and the country’s next Prime Minister.
The combined count of direct and proportional seats is expected to exceed the 138-seat majority mark in the 275-member House of Representatives, clearing the path for the formation of a new government. The process of government formation is likely to begin soon after the swearing-in ceremony of newly elected Members of Parliament.
Outgoing Prime Minister Sushila Karki has stated that she is ready to hand over power respectfully once the new mandate is formally confirmed.
RSP leaders have emphasized transparency and commitment to the expectations of voters, saying that Shah’s rise to the prime minister’s post reflects both the party’s internal consensus and the people’s mandate.
Shah’s political journey has been remarkable. In 2022, the structural engineer—known for his signature black rectangular sunglasses and background in Nepal’s underground rap scene—shocked the political establishment by winning the Kathmandu mayoral election as an independent candidate. Running with the “stick” symbol, he received 61,767 votes, comfortably defeating Srijana Singh of the Nepali Congress, who got 38,341 votes, and Keshav Sthapit of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist), who secured 38,117 votes.
Now, just four years later, the 35-year-old Shah has moved beyond local politics and is on track to become one of the youngest prime ministers in Nepal’s history.
