Kathmandu- The CPN (UML) has concluded voting and counting for its new leadership, with Chairperson KP Sharma Oli securing a third consecutive term as party president and Shankar Pokhrel elected general secretary.
According to the Election Commission, Oli received 1,663 votes, defeating his rival Ishwor Pokhrel, who secured 564 votes. Oli had earlier been elected president at the ninth and tenth general conventions. The contest this time was closely watched as Ishwor Pokhrel led a separate panel challenging Oli’s leadership.
In the race for general secretary, Shankar Pokhrel emerged victorious with 1,228 votes, while Surendra Prasad Pandey received 999 votes. A formal announcement of the results is awaited, though the outcomes have been confirmed by party election officials.
The results for deputy general secretary positions also reflected strong performance by the Oli-led panel. Lekhraj Bhatta secured 1,452 votes, Raghubir Mahaseth 1,368 votes and Yogesh Bhattarai 1,348 votes. While Bhatta and Mahaseth were backed by Oli’s panel, Bhattarai was elected from Ishwor Pokhrel’s panel.
Similarly, Oli’s panel dominated the secretary-level elections. Mahesh Basnet received the highest number of votes, followed by Padma Kumari Aryal and Chhabilal Bishwakarma. Other candidates elected as secretaries include Sherdhan Rai, Hikmat Kumar Karki, Khagaraj Adhikari, Yamalal Kandel, Rajan Bhattarai and Bhanubhakta Dhakal.
Earlier during counting, the Election Commission had stated that votes from 40 electronic voting machines, totalling 1,139 ballots, were counted initially, with Oli and Shankar Pokhrel leading from the early rounds. The final results have reinforced Oli’s control over the party leadership following the 11th National Congress.
