Voting is underway in Bangladesh Elections 2026, with a close contest expected between two major prime ministerial candidates.
Polling began at 6:30am Pakistan time and will continue until 3:30pm, according to election authorities.
The Bangladesh Election Commission said voting is being held across 300 parliamentary constituencies in 64 districts, with 42,761 polling stations set up nationwide to facilitate voters.
For the first time in the country’s history, postal voting has been introduced, benefiting nearly 15 million Bangladeshis living abroad.
Simultaneous voting is taking place in 299 of the 300 constituencies. Around 2,000 candidates are contesting for 350 seats in parliament. An 11-party alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami is also in the electoral race.
Tarique Rahman is contesting as the prime ministerial candidate of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), while Jamaat-e-Islami chief Shafiqur Rahman is considered a strong contender for the top office.
Both Shafiqur Rahman and Tarique Rahman have cast their votes.
Speaking to media after voting, Shafiqur Rahman said his party would accept the election results regardless of the outcome and urged other political groups to respect the public mandate.
