DHAKA – Bangladesh has been without a competitive election for so long that almost a third of the electorate has never witnessed genuine polls in which voters elect parliamentarians of their choosing.
That is set to change today as thousands queue at polling centres, some since the crack of dawn, to reclaim their franchise. These same voters had taken to the streets in July 2024 to overthrow a tyrannical regime. They bled while many others lost their lives.
It had been a monsoon of rupture. But today, they can usher a spring of hope.
Keen to ensure a peaceful election, the Election Commission has taken all-out measures to drape the country in a security blanket. And the voters will be at hand to make it festive. Many have journeyed back to their ancestral homes to take back what had been long withheld — their right to vote.
Bangladesh is witnessing a competitive election again after 17 years as the entire nation will wait in suspense over who will emerge victorious.
Alongside the parliamentary election, citizens will also cast ballots in a referendum on constitutional reforms born out of a rare political consensus. The July charter is set to strengthen democratic institutions and ensure they function with greater accountability and effectiveness.
The memories of past elections still weigh heavy. The one-sided contests of 2014 and 2024 were widely dismissed as shams, while the 2018 edition was marred by allegations of ballot stuffing and intimidation. Together, these episodes destroyed public trust and left an entire generation without the experience of a genuine electoral contest.
“It feels like our voice matters again… We have waited too long for this day. I am really excited,” said Raihan Bin Sarwar, a private company executive from Mirpur-15, who will vote for the first time today.
Prof Sk Tawfique M Haque, an expert on policy and governance at the North South University, said people now feel empowered, as they will be able to elect their representatives.
Regarding enthusiasm among voters, he said that images of people rushing home in large numbers to cast ballots have been absent for many years. “The turnout could reach record levels.”
Even poor and low-income citizens are spending from their own pockets to travel home just to cast vote — some riding on the roofs of trains, he said.
“Since the mass uprising, people have become far more politically confident. There is no fear, no hesitation. This level of enthusiasm is unprecedented, and for democracy, it is a major achievement,” he said.
Ever since the interim government took office, it often repeated its priorities — reforms, justice, and election. Although elections are generally held every five years, this election, the 13th edition in Bangladesh, comes just 26 months after the last one — triggered by a mass uprising that ousted the previous regime in August 2024.
Awami League has been barred from the election for its role in the brutal crackdown that claimed at least 1,400 lives. While 50 parties are contesting the election, the main contest will be between two alliances — one led by the BNP and the other by the Jamaat-e-Islami.
While the BNP was pressing for an election by December 2025 from early in the interim government’s tenure, other parties, including the Jamaat, said they would go to polls only after reforms were carried out.
But as demands for a quick election became stronger, Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus announced in June 2025 that polls would be held in the first half of February, provided that preparations were complete.
Reforms remained elusive until mid-October, when 25 parties signed the July charter after months of negotiations among 30 parties at the National Consensus Commission. Five parties refused to sign, which included the National Citizen Party (NCP), the natural heir to the July uprising.
In November, the government announced that the national election and the referendum would be held on the same day. Later, the Election Commission confirmed February 12 as polling day.
In his address to the nation, Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin yesterday urged citizens to vote, reminding them that it was not only a civic right but also a responsibility.
“I appeal to political parties, candidates and voters; behave responsibly to maintain peace and harmony,” he said.
Polling is taking place in 299 constituencies, with election to Sherpur-3 suspended following the death of a candidate. Today, 42,779 polling stations will open their doors to 12.77 crore voters between 7:30am and 4:30pm.
They will be picking from 2,028 candidates — 1,755 fielded by 50 parties and 273 independents. Among them, only 83 are women.
The BNP fielded 292 candidates, compared to 225 from the Jamaat. Both parties gave up the remaining seats to their alliance partners. The NCP, formed by frontline July protestors, is contesting 32 seats as part of the Jamaat-led alliance.
The Jatiya Party (Ershad) fielded 196 candidates, while Islami Andolan Bangladesh nominated 259 contestants.
With the AL banned and its registration withheld, the political landscape has shifted dramatically, leaving the scope for the BNP and the Jamaat-led alliance to secure AL strongholds where they never had a chance.
Founded in 1978, BNP has been out of power for 17 years — its longest stretch. The Jamaat, banned after independence for collaborating with Pakistan during the war, was revived in 1976 and later joined BNP in a four‑party alliance in 1999. Together, they won in 2001, with two Jamaat leaders becoming cabinet members.
In 2013, the High Court cancelled Jamaat’s registration, ruling that provisions of its charter violated the constitution and election laws.
Facing criticism for its ties with the Jamaat, the BNP distanced itself from the Islamist party. The 20-party alliance dissolved in December 2022 after BNP asked allies not to use the alliance’s name.
BNP won the 1979 election, and then the election in 1991 following the fall of HM Ershad in a mass uprising. It also won the one-sided polls in February 1996 but that administration was short lived. It regained power in 2001.
Jamaat took part in the national election under its name in 1986. The party achieved its best result in 1991 with 18 seats and 12.13 percent of the popular vote.
While both parties pledge justice as a founding principle, their chiefs have exchanged taunts and barbs, and at times fiery rhetoric.
BNP’s Tarique Rahman and Jamaat’s Shafiqur Rahman had been in a war of words. The BNP slammed the Jamaat for its role during the 1971 Liberation War, and accused of misleading people through misuse of religion, and of conspiring to carry out “election engineering.”
On the other hand, the Jamaat accused the BNP of corruption, land-grabbing, extortion, and “neo-fascism.”
While pre-polls violence is not unusual in South Asia, it has been low in Bangladesh this time.
“In a densely populated country like Bangladesh, where emotions run high during elections, the overall atmosphere remains relatively calm,” said Prof Tawfique.
Political analysts note another striking feature of this election: the heightened global interest in Bangladesh’s democratic transition. The polls are being held under the watch of the largest contingent of local and international observers since 2008 — 335 international observers from 40 countries and eight representatives from international organisations. Another 57 observers have arrived at the EC’s invitation.
Badiul Alam Majumdar, chief of the now-defunct Electoral Reform Commission, said the surge in observers reflects the competitive nature of this election.
“Many international observers showed little interest in monitoring the last three polls, as they were not contested,” he added.
ANN/The Daily Star
