Balendra Shah

Balendra Shah

Balendra Shah, a rapper-turned-politician and the prime ministerial candidate for the RSP, celebrates with his supporters after winning the election, in Damak, Jhapa district, Nepal, on 7 March 2026. Photo: Reuters

Nepal ex-rapper's party wins election in landslide after Gen Z protests

Balendra Shah’s Rastriya ⁠Swatantra Party won 182 seats in the 275-member parliament, the largest majority of any party in more than six decades.

A vehicle with a campaign poster of Balendra Shah, a rapper-turned-politician and the prime ministerial candidate for Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), waits for passengers ahead of Nepal's general election, in Gauriganj, Jhapa district, Nepal, February 25, 2026. REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar

Inside the Nepal campaign that could vault Balendra Shah to power

Balendra Shah, 35, a former rapper and composer who currently serves as the mayor of Kathmandu, popularly known as 'Balen,' attends Indra Jatra festival at Kathmandu Durbar Square in Kathmandu, Nepal, on 6 September 2025. File Photo: Reuters

Nepal's Balendra Shah holds unassailable poll lead for seat: Commission figures

Balendra Shah, a rapper-turned-politician and the prime ministerial candidate for Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), votes during the general election in Kathmandu, Nepal, March 5, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar

Nepal goes to the polls; voters seek change after youth-led protests

File Photo: Courtesy/The New York Times

From rapper to mayor: Gen Z protesters now want Balendra Shah as Nepal's interim PM