Election offices set up for upper house poll

Published On: January 14, 2018 03:16 AM NPT By: Republica  | @RepublicaNepal


KATHMANDU, Jan 14: As part of its preparations to conduct the upper house elections, the Election Commission (EC) on Saturday set up the offices of returning officers in all the seven provinces. 

Upper house elections scheduled for February 7 will be conducted in all provinces.

The election body established such offices where the government has set up offices of the high courts. 
According to EC Spokesperson Navaraj Dhakal, returning officer's office for Province 1 has been established in Morang while election office of province 2 has been established in Dhanusha. Likewise, offices of returning officers have been established in Lalitpur, Kaski, Dang and Surkhet for Province 3, Province 4, Province 5 and Province 6 respectively.

Returning officers' office for Province 7 has been established in Doti. 
Voters from across the province concerned will have to go to the offices of the returning officers to cast their votes. Chiefs and deputy chiefs of 753 local units and 715 members of the provincial assemblies elected under both the first-past-the-post electoral system and proportional representation category will elect the upper house through the single transferable voting system. 

Of the total 59 members of the upper house, 56 will be elected through election while the government will nominate the remaining three members. 
Altogether 21 parties have registered for the upper house elections. They will have to file nomination on January 24, according to the election calendar released by the election body.

The delay in appointing governors, the ceremonial heads of the provincial assemblies, has affected the election body's efforts to expedite poll preparations. Legally, governors enjoy the right to administer the oath of office and secrecy to the newly elected members of the provincial assemblies. In the absence of governors, neither the provincial assembly members elected under the PR system have been officially declared, nor have the provincial assemblies got a complete shape.


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