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Published : 12 Feb 2026, 05:21 PM
Bangladesh has completed balloting in the general election and concurrent referendum without any major incidents, with counting now under way across the country.
The Election Commission (EC) reported turnout of around 48 percent by 2pm, based on data from 36,031 of 43,000 centres.
Officials estimate the final turnout could reach 55–60 percent.
Polls were open from 7:30am to 4:30pm, with those already inside centres allowed to cast ballots beyond the deadline.
LEADERS CAST THEIR VOTES
Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus described the day as one of “liberation” after voting in Dhaka, while Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin said the nation had “boarded the train of democracy”.
BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman expressed hope of victory and pledged to govern with allies from the anti‑Awami League movement.
National Citizen Party leader Nahid Islam called it a day of reclaiming ownership of the country, while Jamaat-e-Islami chief Shafiqur Rahman hailed the chance to vote after years of denial.
Other party leaders, including slami Andolan Bangladesh’s Syed Muhammad Faizul Karim and Jatiya Party’s Shameem Haider Patwary, voiced cautious optimism while warning against irregularities.
ALLEGATIONS AND INCIDENTS
Though largely peaceful, isolated clashes and complaints were reported. Bomb blasts occurred in Munshiganj and Gopalganj, while BNP and Jamaat activists clashed in Meherpur.
Candidates alleged irregularities, including mismatched voter lists and polling agents being barred from centres.
The Army intervened in Dhaka to rescue an NCP coordinator after tensions with BNP activists.
Police said four people died of illness during polling.
Transparency International Bangladesh reported 15 deaths linked to election violence since the schedule was announced.
VOTER NUMBERS
The EC said 127.7 million voters were registered, including 6.48 million men, 6.29 million women, and 1,232 hijra voters.
More than 1.5 million were authorised to vote by postal ballot, with over 1.1 million ballots received by returning officers, including nearly half a million from abroad.
Results are being announced at centres and collated by returning officers before official publication from the EC Headquarters.
