Balen Shah Becomes Prime Minister — RSP's Historic Outright Majority
बालेन साह प्रधानमन्त्री बने — रास्वपाको ऐतिहासिक बहुमत
What happened
Balen Shah — the engineer who became Kathmandu's mayor in 2022 — led his party to win more seats than all other parties combined in the 2026 election. He became Prime Minister on March 27, 2026. Nepal's old political parties were effectively swept away in one election. Nepal's political history changed completely.
Full Verified Record
Balendra 'Balen' Shah, 38, was sworn in as Nepal's 47th Prime Minister on 27 March 2026 after leading the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) to win 182 of 275 parliamentary seats in the February 2026 elections — the first outright majority in Nepal's 17-year republican history. He is the youngest PM in Nepali history, the first of Madhesi origin, and the first political outsider to displace the entrenched three-party system (NC, UML, Maoist) that had governed Nepal since 2008. His cabinet includes technocrats and professionals rather than career politicians, and his first 100-day agenda focuses on anti-corruption infrastructure, civil service reform, and renegotiating Nepal's aid dependencies.
बालेन्द्र साह ३८ वर्षको उमेरमा नेपालका ४७औँ प्रधानमन्त्री बने — गणतन्त्र इतिहासको पहिलो स्पष्ट संसदीय बहुमत सहित।
Why it mattered
RSP's outright majority was the first in Nepal's 17-year republic — ending the coalition horse-trading that had produced 13 governments in 17 years. The three-party system (Nepali Congress, CPN-UML, Maoist Centre) that had rotated power since 2008 was effectively dismantled. The 2026 election is Nepal's most consequential since 1990.
Who was affected
Every Nepali citizen. The traditional political establishment which lost power. Nepal's diaspora which voted in record numbers for RSP. Civil servants facing reform. Foreign governments and aid agencies recalibrating relationships with Nepal's new government.
Verification
verified
Editorial status
approved
Fact sensitivity
Level 1 of 5
Last updated
29 May 2026