A new Nepali party, led by an ex-rapper, is set for a landslide win in parliamentary election

Balendra Shah, foreground, former mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City and prime ministerial candidate of the Rastriya Swatantra Party, arrives to receive his victory certificate after defeating former Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli of the Communist Party of Nepal–Unified Marxist-Leninist (CPN-UML) in Jhapa, about 267 miles (430 kilometers) southeast of Kathmandu, Nepal, Sunday, March 8, 2026.

A Nepali political party led by an ex-rapper is set for a landslide victory in the country's first parliamentary election since Gen Z protests ousted the old leadership that has ruled the Himalayan nation for decades.

(Image credit: Niranjan Shrestha)