World News | US Envoy Thompson Congratulates Prime Minister Deuba on Successfully Holding Nepal Elections
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. US Ambassador to Nepal Dean Thompson has told Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba that he hoped the recent general elections would strengthen the democratic process in the country.
Kathmandu, Dec 1 (PTI) US Ambassador to Nepal Dean Thompson has told Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba that he hoped the recent general elections would strengthen the democratic process in the country.
Thomson met Deuba and congratulated the prime minister for holding successful elections to the House of Representatives as well as seven provincial assemblies on November 20.
The US envoy during the meeting on Wednesday said the United States hoped the elections would strengthen the democratic process in Nepal, The Kathmandu Post newspaper quoted Arun Subedi, Foreign Relations Adviser to the prime minister, as saying.
"It's an incredible opportunity to witness democracy in action. I was able to visit polling stations in the Kathmandu Valley to learn about the voting process in Nepal," Thompson tweeted on Sunday.
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"Congratulations to the Nepali people for exercising their democratic rights today!" he wrote after visiting some polling stations on November 20.
This was the second meeting between Deuba and Thompson since the ambassador arrived in Nepal on October 13 this year to take up his new assignment.
Deuba in return thanked the US for its support in Nepal's democratic transition, democracy, human rights, and development endeavors, Subedi said.
The prime minister also expressed hope that the US would continue to support Nepal in the coming days in various sectors.
So far results of 158 seats in the House of Representatives have been declared. The ruling alliance led by the NC is moving towards a clear majority, allowing them to form a new government. The counting of votes is almost complete, with the results of six seats yet to be announced.
A party needs at least 138 seats to form a majority government in the 275-member House of Representatives.
The five-party ruling alliance, which includes the NC, CPN-Maoist Centre, CPN-Unified Socialist, Loktantrik Samajwadi Party, and Rashtriya Janamorcha has a combined strength of 85 seats in the HoR under direct election, followed by the Opposition CPN-UML alliance with 57 seats.
Elections to the House of Representatives (HoR) and seven provincial assemblies were held to end the prolonged political instability that has plagued the Himalayan nation. Out of 275 Members of Parliament, 165 will be elected through direct voting, while the remaining 110 will be elected through a proportional electoral system.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)