EC Wants to Finalize Election Preparations in Bangladesh by November

Darwin, August 19 – Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus has announced that the next national election will be held in the first half of February. The Election Commission (EC) has also said that it will declare the election schedule in December. To that end, the constitutional body wants to complete all election preparations by November.

The commission, headed by A. M. M. Nasir Uddin, will publish its roadmap (action plan) within this week.

A meeting was held at the EC on Monday to finalize the action plan. Once approved by the commission, it may be published in booklet form.

Akhtar Ahmed, Senior Secretary of the EC Secretariat, said:
“Regarding the action plan, I had said we would do it this week. Yes, it is being coordinated. The draft has been prepared with inter-departmental and other relevant issues. We will now place it before the commission for approval. I believe we will be able to release it within this week.”

The EC usually prepares a clear roadmap before an election, detailing timelines and procedures for all pre- and post-poll activities. These include updating the voter list, redefining constituency boundaries, registering political parties, reforming electoral laws, procuring election materials, holding dialogues with political parties and stakeholders, training election officials, printing necessary materials, and organizing law-and-order coordination meetings.

The practice of announcing such a roadmap started before the 9th parliamentary elections, and since then the EC has been publishing outlines for subsequent elections. For the 12th parliamentary elections, the then EC announced a detailed roadmap in September 2022, about a year and a half before the polls.

Plan to Finish Preparations by November

The EC wants to wrap up all preparations by November. It has allocated one month for dialogues with political parties, initially planning to complete them by September–October. Between August and September, it also plans to publish the gazette regarding the registration of new political parties.

The draft updated voter list has already been published and will be finalized on August 31. Citizens who turn 18 by October 31 will also be added to the list. The code of conduct for political parties and candidates has already been finalized and is now awaiting vetting by the Ministry of Law. The amendments to the Representation of the People Order (RPO) have also been completed.

For election security, several special committees have been formed, and steps have been taken for digital surveillance during polling. Training of polling officials will begin on September 1.

The draft delimitation of 300 constituencies has already been published. In 82 constituencies, a total of 1,596 objections and claims were filed by August 10. These will be resolved by October. The commission has also set a target to complete procurement of election materials by September.

The Chief Adviser’s Office has instructed the EC to complete all preparations before Ramadan begins in February. The election schedule is expected to be announced in the first half of December.

According to EC sources, the action plan will not specify the exact schedule or polling date. However, the election may be held on any weekday (except Friday and Saturday) between February 5 and 12.

An election commissioner, who wished to remain anonymous, told Deshkal News:
“The election date will be finalized in consultation with the government. The schedule will be announced about 60 days before the election.”

When asked about the date, he added:
“A draft roadmap has been prepared, but no specific date has been fixed yet. We are working in line with the government’s declared timeframe.”

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