102 nominations submitted by 20 smaller parties, only 5 fielded above 100
Only 5 parties have submitted over 100 nominations each
Highlights:
- Independent candidates: 478
- Parties fielding more than 100 candidates: 5
- Three parties submit 1 nomination each
- One party submitted 2 nominations
- 20 political parties combinedly submitted 102 nomination
Aspirants from 20 smaller political parties have submitted a total of 102 nomination papers, while 20 parties have submitted fewer than 10 nominations each. Three parties submitted only one nomination each – Ganatantri Party, Bangladesh National Awami Party (Bangladesh NAP), and the Bangladesh Samoadhikar Party (BEP).
For the upcoming national parliamentary election, 2,568 nomination papers have been submitted by 51 political parties. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) submitted the highest number with 331 nominations, followed by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami (276), Islami Andolon Bangladesh (268), Jatiya Party (JaPa) (224), and Gono Odhikar Party (104).
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Only 5 parties have submitted over 100 nominations each.
Some nominations have already been cancelled during scrutiny, although appeals against cancellation can be filed until 9 January.
Questions have now arisen regarding the 20 parties that submitted nominations in single digits. Several parties said they did not have sufficient time to submit nominations as they are newly registered parties, while others cited high election expenses, which prevented them from fielding candidates in all constituencies.
Among these parties, three parties submitted one nomination each, one party submitted two, four parties submitted three each, two parties submitted five each, two parties submitted six each, four parties submitted seven each, one party submitted eight, and three parties submitted nine nominations each.
All 51 registered political parties, however, submitted nomination papers. In addition, 478 independent candidates also filed nominations. This total is slightly lower than the 2,741 nominations submitted in the 2024 election, which was boycotted by the BNP and its allies. In the 2018 11th parliamentary election, the number of nominations stood at 3,065.
M Golam Mostafa Bhuiyan, Secretary General of Bangladesh NAP, told The Business Standard that under the current electoral reality, it has become extremely difficult for small parties to field candidates in many constituencies. Initially, the party had planned to contest in 70 constituencies, but considering financial capacity and the overall situation, it ultimately decided to contest in only one seat.
He said, "It is not just the Tk50,000 nomination deposit; the additional expenses related to campaigning have also become a major obstacle. As a result, we have collectively decided to prioritise the party chairman's constituency and focus our efforts there."
The party's sole candidate is its chairman Jebel Rahman Gani, contesting from Nilphamari-1.
Jasmine Tuli, member of the Electoral Reform Commission and former additional secretary of the Election Commission Secretariat, told TBS that unlike major parties, not all small parties have organisational networks spread across all 300 constituencies. Many parties, based on their capacity and manpower, focus on five, ten, or a limited number of constituencies. She noted that this trend has been observed in the past as well.
She said, "Major parties usually contest nationwide, while smaller parties participate on a limited scale. This reflects their actual capacity."
The Bangladesh Nezame Islam Party received its Election Commission registration in late December 2025. The party's central assistant secretary general and parliamentary candidate from Sunamganj-1, Maulana Muzammil Haque Talukdar, said that because registration was obtained at the last moment, preparations had to be completed within a very short time.
"We did this with great difficulty. The time was extremely limited," he said.
Regarding the party's preparations, he said, "We were able to field candidates in six constituencies in total, including Chattogram and Cox's Bazar."
He added that with sufficient time, the number of candidates could have been much higher. "We had around 50 prospective candidates ready." The party is part of Jamaat's 10-party electoral alliance.
Parties with fewer number of candidates include Ganatantri Party – 1, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JASAD) – 7, Zaker Party – 7, Bangladesh Jatiya Party (BJP) – 3, Bangladesh Khelafat Andolon – 11, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Bangladesh – 5, Gonofront – 6, Bangladesh Jatiya Party – 5, Bangladesh Kalyan Party – 3, Islami Oikya Jote – 3, Jatiya Ganatantrik Party (JAGPA) – 3, Bangladesh Biplobi Workers Party – 7, Bangladesh Muslim League (BML) – 7, Bangladesh Nationalist Front (BNF) – 9, National Democratic Movement (NDM) – 8, and Bangladesh Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal.
