KATHMANDU: Twelve candidates of the Rashtriya Swatantra Party (RSP) secured more than 50,000 votes each in the March 5 House of Representatives election, signaling a major shift in voter preference toward the new political force.

The highest vote-getter is RSP senior leader Balendra Shah (Balen), who resigned as Kathmandu mayor to contest parliamentary politics. He won Jhapa-5 with 68,348 votes, defeating former Prime Minister and CPN (UML) Chairman KP Sharma Oli by a margin of 49,614 votes. Oli, a six-time parliamentarian, received 18,734 votes, a sharp decline from his 52,319 votes in 2022.

Other RSP leaders securing over 50,000 votes include:

• Indira Rana Magar, former Deputy Speaker, won Jhapa-2 with 60,110 votes, defeating former Speaker Devraj Ghimire by 48,742 votes.
• Sobita Gautam was elected from Chitwan-2 with 59,277 votes, defeating former Mayor Renu Dahal, who received 20,615 votes.
• Dr. Lekhjung Thapa won Rupandehi-3 with 58,814 votes, defeating Nepali Congress’ Sushil Gurung by 50,379 votes.
• Hari Dhakal, Chitwan-1, increased his tally from 34,189 in 2022 to 58,208 votes, defeating Rajendra Prasad Burlakoti by 45,175 votes.
• Lal Bikram Thapa, Sunsari-2, received 57,348 votes, defeating Rajiv Koirala by 41,277 votes.
• Sulabh Kharel, Rupandehi-2, defeated CPN (UML) Vice-chairman Bishnu Prasad Paudel by 42,679 votes, securing 56,550 votes.
• Rubina Acharya, Morang-6, defeated three-time parliamentarian Dr. Shekhar Koirala by 42,663 votes, winning 55,513 votes.
• Sunil Lamsal, Rupandehi-1, became a parliamentarian with 54,845 votes, defeating Hira Bahadur Khatri by 42,863 votes.
• RSP Chairman Rabi Lamichhane, Chitwan-2, won 54,402 votes, defeating Meena Kumari Kharel by 39,838 votes.
• Badan Kumar Bhandari, Kavrepalanchowk-2, secured 53,344 votes, defeating Nepali Congress’ Madhu Prasad Acharya by 35,476 votes.
• Rajan Gautam, Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta Purba), who lost in 2022 with 24,305 votes, won this time with 50,945 votes, defeating Balkrishna Ghimire by 34,652 votes.

Political analyst Rajendra Sharma noted that voters gave RSP candidates significant support as an alternative to traditional parties, pointing out that former party leaders received far fewer votes than newcomers. Amrit Kumar Shrestha, Associate Professor of Political Science at Tribhuvan University, added that RSP has received unexpected voter confidence, warning that failure to deliver on promises may lead to voter punishment in future elections.