At stake in this election:

• The office of President of Bangladesh

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Zillur RAHMAN *
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Sheikh HASINA Wajed
• Assembly: Bangladesh has a unicameral National Parliament (Jatiya Sangsad) with 350 seats.

* President Zillur Rahman passed away in March 2013. The vacant post of President must be filled within 90 days from the day of the vacancy. On April 29th 2013 the next president will be indirectly elected by parliament to serve a 5 year term.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by parliament to serve a 5-year term.
• Prime Minister is appointed by the President.
• In the National Parliament (Jatiya Sangsad) 300 members are elected by plurality vote in single-member constituencies to serve 5-year terms.***

*** There are 50 additional seats reserved for women. These seats are distributed among political parties in proportion to their overall vote share in the election. All candidates are approved through a vote by parliament.

Main candidates in this election:

• Abdul HAMID
  • Party: Awami League

Note: Current parliamentary speaker Abdul HAMID was elected unopposed. Parliament elects the president of Bangladesh.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 150,493,658 ( 2011 )
• Registered Voters: 81,130,973 ( 2008 )