Campaigning starts for Bangladesh's first national election after Hasina's ouster

DHAKA, Bangladesh — Campaigning began Thursday for Bangladesh's first national elections since the 2024 uprising that ousted longtime Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

The major political parties held campaign rallies in the capital, Dhaka, and elsewhere ahead of Feb. 12 election, which is seen as the most consequential in Bangladesh's history as it follows Hasina's ouster and is being held under an interim government with voters also deciding on proposed political reforms.

The interim government led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus has pledged to hold a free and fair election, but questions were raised after his administration banned Hasina's former ruling Awami League party. The Awami League and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party have historically dominated the country's electorate.

There are also concerns about the country's law and order situation, but the government says they will keep the voting peaceful.

Yunus assumed office three days after Hasina left the country for India on Aug. 5, 2024, following the deaths of hundreds of protesters and others in a violent crackdown.

With the Awami League excluded from the election, a 10-party alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami, an Islamist party, is seeking to expand its influence. Jamaat-e-Islami has long faced criticism from secular groups who say its positions challenge Bangladesh's secular foundations. A new party formed by student leaders of the uprising, the National Citizen Party, or NCP, is also part of the alliance.

Tarique Rahman, BNP chairman and the son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, is widely seen as a leading contender for prime minister. His party has drawn strong support rooted in the political legacy of his mother, who died last month. Rahman returned to Bangladesh last month after 17 years in exile in the United Kingdom.

Jamaat-e-Islami and the NCP are set to begin their campaigns in the capital, Dhaka.

The election will also include a referendum on a national charter, with the interim government seeking campaigning for voters to support what it describes as a new political course built on reforms. The charter was signed last year by 25 of the country's 52 registered political parties. The Awami League opposed the idea and several other parties declined to sign the document.

The July National Charter, named after the uprising that began in July 2024 and led to the fall of Hasina, is currently nonbinding, but the supporters of the charter say a referendum is needed to make it legally binding and a part of the constitution. Only Parliament can change the constitution in Bangladesh.