Dhaka, August 20, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
BNP candidate Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has been elected the 23rd President of Bangladesh after defeating Oli Ahmed, who was backed by the Jamaat-e-Islami-led 11-party alliance, in the country’s first contested presidential election in more than three decades.
Fakhrul secured 255 of the 343 valid votes cast in the election held at the National Parliament on Thursday afternoon. Ahmed received 88 votes. The polling was conducted under the supervision of Chief Election Commissioner and Returning Officer A M M Nasir Uddin.
Announcing the result, the Chief Election Commissioner said Fakhrul had been duly elected after securing the highest number of votes, Bangladeshi media outlet UNB reported.
The newly elected President is scheduled to take the oath of office at Bangabhaban on Friday, according to the Chief Whip.
Of the 349 lawmakers eligible to vote, six did not cast their ballots, according to reports. Those listed among the non-voters included BNP lawmakers Mirza Abbas and Mostafa Kamal Pasha, independent lawmaker Rumeen Farhana, Jamaat lawmaker Gazi Nazrul Islam and Islami Andolan Bangladesh lawmaker Oli Ullah.
The election marked a significant departure from the practice of electing Bangladesh’s President without a contest, which had prevailed since 1991. The last presidential election decided through voting in Parliament was held on October 8, 1991.
The vacancy arose after President Mohammed Shahabuddin resigned on July 24. National Parliament Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed had been serving as acting President. Under Bangladesh’s Constitution, a presidential election must be held within 90 days of the office becoming vacant.
Fakhrul has served as the BNP’s effective second-in-command for more than 15 years and is the party’s longest-serving Secretary General. He became one of its most prominent public faces during a turbulent period when party chairman Tarique Rahman was in exile in London and former BNP chief Khaleda Zia faced imprisonment, house arrest and prolonged illness.
During that period, Fakhrul remained the senior BNP leader physically present in Bangladesh, maintaining contact with party workers and helping implement decisions on the ground, The Daily Star reported.
His elevation to the presidency also comes amid proposed constitutional changes under the July Charter. The agreement among political parties seeks to establish a greater balance between the powers of the President and Prime Minister, including by expanding the President’s independence in appointments to certain positions such as the National Human Rights Commission and Information Commission.
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