Bidya Devi Bhandari re-elected Nepal’s president

Bidya Devi Bhandari was on Tuesday re-elected the President of Nepal with an overwhelming majority.

She was the candidate of the ruling Left Alliance and was supported by two major Madhesi parties. She defeated Kumari Laxmi Rai of the Nepali Congress, the main opposition party, by securing a majority of more than two-thirds.

Bhandari mustered 39,275 votes while Rai garnered 11,730 votes, Election Commission spokesperson Nawaraj Dhakal said. Members of the federal Parliament and provincial assemblies participated in the election.

CPN-UML leader Bhandari was elected the first woman president of Nepal on October 28, 2015.

Bhandari, the wife of charismatic communist leader Madan Bhandari, has been active in politics since her school days. She came to the limelight after the untimely death of her husband in a road accident in 1993.

She was elected twice in parliamentary elections in 1994 and 1999 and also served as the defence minister.

She wielded considerable influence in the CPN-UML, one of the constituents of the Left Alliance, and was elected vice-chairperson of the party in its eighth general convention held in Butwal. Bhandari, who retained the position at the party’s general convention, is considered one of the confidants of party chairman and Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.

She will be administered the oath of office by the Chief Justice on Wednesday.