The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has secured a landslide victory in the 13th National Parliamentary Elections, winning 209 seats out of the 297 officially declared. The Election Commission (EC) formally concluded the announcement of results on Friday morning, marking a historic political shift in the country.
Md. Ruhul Amin Mallik, Director of the EC’s Public Relations Department, confirmed that a total of 59.44% of voters cast their ballots across 299 constituencies.
Official Seat Distribution
According to EC Senior Secretary Akhter Ahmed, the seat count reflects a decisive mandate for the BNP. While results for 297 seats are finalized, outcomes for Chattogram-2 and Chattogram-4 remain suspended due to ongoing court cases.
Major Party Breakdown (297 Seats):
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Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP): 209
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Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami: 68
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National Citizen Party: 6
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Independents: 7
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Other Parties: 7 (including Khelafat Majlis, Gono Odhikar Parishad, and others)
Notably, the result for Sherpur-2 was initially withheld but has since been announced. However, the EC has decided to delay the publication of the official gazette for this specific seat for the time being.
Referendum on Constitutional Reform
The election was held simultaneously with a national referendum on the “July National Charter,” a constitutional reform package.
The Secretary noted that the referendum saw a slightly higher turnout of 60.26%. This discrepancy is attributed to the fact that while parliamentary results were stayed in two Chattogram seats, the referendum votes in those areas were legally valid and included in the final count.
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‘Yes’ Votes: 48,074,429
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‘No’ Votes: 22,565,627
Next Steps: Gazette and Government Formation
Senior Secretary Akhter Ahmed clarified that the EC will avoid any “hurried” announcements to ensure total accuracy.
“Our responsibility is to provide accurate data rather than rushed information. As soon as the hard copies of the final results are verified against the digital message sheets, the gazette will be issued immediately,” the Secretary stated.
The EC also reiterated that the suspension of the two Chattogram seats was a direct result of judicial stay orders and not administrative delays. With the BNP crossing the 151-seat threshold for a majority, the party is expected to begin the process of forming a new government within the coming days.
