Presidential polls on 20 Aug, MPs to vote from 2-5pm

Bangladesh's 23rd presidential election will be contested for the first time in 35 years, with MPs set to vote at the Jatiya Sangsad chamber from 2pm to 5pm on 20 August.

Election Commission Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed announced the polling arrangements today (11 August), saying the election will be held in the parliament chamber and will be contested as more than one valid candidate is expected to take part.

The BNP and Jamaat-led alliance have already announced candidates, with the ruling BNP naming Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir as its candidate and the opposition Jamaat-led 11-party alliance naming Col (Retd) Oli Ahmed as its presidential aspirant.

The EC will provide three transparent ballot boxes, allowing MPs to cast their ballots in any of them. Polling will be broadcast live at the beginning, while designated seating will be arranged for journalists inside the chamber.

Counting will begin immediately after voting ends at 5pm. A four- to five-member team will count the ballots inside the chamber, after which Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin, acting as the election officer, will announce the preliminary results. 

The announcement will include valid and rejected ballots and each candidate's vote count. The final results will later be published in an official gazette.

The EC will deploy 20 officials, while the Parliament Secretariat will coordinate logistical arrangements.

A preparatory meeting was held at Parliament's Cabinet Room today, chaired by Acting Speaker Barrister Kayser Kamal.

The election follows the resignation of 22nd President Mohammed Shahabuddin on 24 July, citing health reasons. The EC subsequently fixed 20 August as the polling date.