Bangladesh election, referendum on Feb 12; schedule announced

The much-sought national election and a referendum on the July (Reform) Charter will simultaneously be held on February 12 (Thursday) under a non-political government after 18 years, as the Election Commission announced the schedule on Thursday evening.

Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin announced the schedule in his pre-recorded speech telecast by state-owned Bangladesh Television and Bangladesh Betar at 6 pm.

According to the election schedule, the deadline for the submission of nomination papers is December 29, while the scrutiny of nomination papers is on December 30-January 4, and the last date for the withdrawal of candidature is January 26. The election campaign will start on January 22.

The balloting will be held from 7:30 am to 4:30 pm without any break on February 12.

The Chief Election Commissioner expressed hope for a festive election marked by the enthusiastic participation of the people.

A total of 127.6 million voters will have the opportunity to vote in more than 42,000 polling stations under the country's 300 constituencies in the 2026 general election.

The national election, along with a referendum, is going to be held for the first time in the history of Bangladesh elections.

This election is set to differ from previous general elections in several ways because the use of posters has been banned during the campaign, while digital campaigning and billboards are permitted.

Though the postal balloting system has been in the laws for a long time, it was never practised in the previous elections.

This is the first time the Election Commission has introduced an IT-supported hybrid postal balloting system, enabling expatriates, government staff, polling personnel, and the persons who will be in the legal custody to exercise their franchise through a combination of digital registration and manual voting.

No general election was held under a non-political administration after 2008, as the last three parliamentary elections were held in 2014, 2018 and 2028 under the Awami League government. The 9th parliamentary election was held on December 29, 200,8 under the army-backed caretaker government.