At Stake in this Election:  

• 300 seats of the Bangladeshi Parliament.  

• A referendum is being held simultaneously.  

Government Structure: 

• Chief of State: President Mohammad SHAHABUDDIN (since 24 April 2023) 

• Head of Government: Chief Adviser of the interim Government Muhammad YUNUS (since 8 August 2024) 

• Assembly: unicameral, 350-seat House of the Nation (Jatiyo Shangsad).  

Electoral System:   

• The President is indirectly elected via the National Parliament. The President serves a 5-year term, renewable once.  

• The Prime Minister is generally the leader of the majority party and is appointed by the President.  

• 300 members of parliament are directly elected from territorial constituencies. The remaining 50 seats are reserved for women who are indirectly elected via the other members of parliament. All members serve 5-year terms.  

Last Election: 

The last election for parliament was held on January 7, 2024. The Awami League (AL) won 222 seats. The Jatiya Party won 11 seats. The voter turnout percentage was disputed.  

Information for Voters: 

জাতীয় সংসদ নির্বাচন / National Assembly Elections (in Bangla) 

New/Unique in this Election: 

This is the first election held since the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in 2024 and the first referendum held since 1991.  

Key Deadlines: 

• Candidate filing deadline: 29 December 2025 

• Voter registration deadline: 10 November 2025 

Main Parties in this Election: 

• Bangladesh Nationalist Party / বাংলাদেশ জাতীয়তাবাদী দল (BNP) 

• • Leader: Tarique RAHMAN 

• • Seats won in the last election: 0 seats out of 300 

• Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami / বাংলাদেশ জামায়াতে ইসলামী (BJI) 

• • Leader: Shafiqur RAHMAN 

• • Seats won in the last election: 0 seats out of 300 

• National Citizen Party / জাতীয় নাগরিক পার্টি (NCP) 

• • Leader: Nahid ISLAM 

• • Seats won in the last election: 0 seats out of 300 

Note: there are over 60 registered parties in this election.  

Country Context: 

• Population: 173,562,364 (2024 estimate) 

• Registered Voters: 128,295,700 (2025) 

• V-Dem Electoral Democracy Index Score: 0.201 (2024) 

• V-Dem Regimes of the World Classification: Electoral Autocracy (2024) 

• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 0.685, Medium, Rank 130 

Gender Data: 

• Female Population: 88,218,708 (2024 estimate) 

• CEDAW Status: Ascended 6 Nov 1984 

• Gender Quota: Yes, 14% of seats reserved for women.  

• Female Candidates in this election: Yes 

• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): n/a, parliament currently suspended. 

• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: 49.3 (2023 estimate) 

Disability Data: 

• CRPD Status: Signed 9 May 2007, Ratified 30 Nov 2007 

• Projected population with a disability: 27,769,978 (2024 estimate) 

IFES Resources: 

• ElectionJudgments: Yes, 2 judgments.