TBM Report
Following the official gazette publication of 296 seats for the 13th Parliament, the Election Commission (EC) has unveiled the preliminary allocation for the 50 reserved women’s seats. According to Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud, the BNP-led alliance is expected to secure 35 seats, while the Jamaat-e-Islami alliance is projected to gain 13 seats based on their proportional representation in the general election. The remaining seats may be contested or allocated based on the final alignment of independent candidates and smaller parties.
Current electoral laws stipulate that a political party or alliance requires at least six elected Members of Parliament (MPs) to qualify for a single reserved women’s seat. As per the gazette, the BNP-led alliance secured 211 seats, and Jamaat-e-Islami won 74. Seven independent candidates also hold a strategic position; if they form a caucus or join a major alliance, they could secure a reserved seat or influence the existing distribution. Smaller parties like Khelafat Majlis and Islami Andolan, having failed to meet the six-seat threshold individually, are encouraged to form alliances to ensure representation.
Commissioner Masud confirmed that the schedule for the reserved seats will be announced before the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr, with the election likely to take place by mid-May 2026. “We are not wasting any time. The process will be completed within 90 days of the general election gazette, as mandated by the Constitution,” he stated. The voters for these seats will be the newly sworn-in MPs of the 13th Parliament, who will cast their ballots at a designated center, potentially within the Parliament building itself.
The final distribution might see slight variations once the results for the four remaining seats—including Bogra-6 and two Chittagong constituencies—are released. Political parties have 21 working days to submit their nominee lists to the EC after the general gazette publication. Since most parties nominate a single candidate per allotted seat, these elections often conclude without a contest. However, the EC remains prepared for a formal vote if multiple candidates emerge for the same quota.
