The Pulse | Politics | South Asia

Bangladesh’s 2026 Election: Where Are the Women? 

Out of 300 seats up for grabs in Bangladesh’s general election, just seven women won election.

Women protest during the July Uprising in Bangladesh, July 15, 2024.

For a nation that has seen not one but two female prime ministers, the recently concluded elections showed a dismal reality. Although half of Bangladesh’s voters are women, the representation of women in politics continues to be low. Only 78 women candidates contested the February 12 elections, out of 1,981 candidates – a meager 3.93 percent. Just seven women actually won election, out of 300 directly elected seats.

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which won the elections handily, accounted for six of those women MPs – but it fielded only 10 women candidates for the elections out of the 300 contested constituencies. Only three women were sworn in as union ministers by the Tarique Rahman Cabinet, out of 50 Cabinet members in total. 

The present political landscape of Bangladesh reflects a nation at odds with women’s place in public life. This was most evident in the case of the National Citizen Party (NCP), formed by student leaders who led the uprising against the ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The NCP has few women leaders, although many women participated in the street protests of July-August 2024. The pre-poll alliance between NCP and Jamat-e-Islami (JI) was seen by many women leaders of the NCP as abandoning the cause of gender equality. 

Due to lack of support from their parties, many women who were formerly affiliated with various political parties – including the NCP – fought the elections independently. For example, Tasnim Jara, a former senior joint secretary of the NCP, contested the election independently from Dhaka-9 constituency. She announced her break from the NCP following its pre-poll alliance with the JI. 

Rumeen Farhana, one of the seven women elected to Parliament, had to contest as an independent after the BNP expelled her. She claimed the party was prioritizing male candidates over women.

The JI is perhaps the most alarming example. The Islamist party is perceived by many as inimical to women’s interests due its track record of conservative statements advocating for a restricted role of women in society. During the transition period under the interim government, there were multiple reports of local JI cadres opposing women’s participation in sports in rural areas. In the run-up to the elections, top leaders of the JI suggested that working hours for women be reduced, sparking much criticism. 

The JI fielded no women candidates at all, a disturbing reality for what is now Bangladesh’s largest opposition party, with 68 seats in Parliament. The JI contested 270 seats without putting forward a single woman.

The NCP, which won six seats, also has a troubling track record – even beyond its alliance with the JI. Reports of increased online attacks and cyber harassment against women by certain sections of the NCP and JI were cited by many female leaders of the NCP as antithetical to the values of the July-August protest. And some NCP leaders face charges of sexual misconduct. The NCP will need to do a course correction to regain the confidence of the women population and to emerge as a true representative of the values of gender equality it seeks to uphold. 

Political parties in Bangladesh have a long way to go in terms of ensuring internal democracy and representation of women within the party system.  

The durability of democratic reforms in Bangladesh will be determined by the inclusion of women in key institutions as well as the representation of women’s interests in the remaking of Bangladesh’s governance system. One of the first challenges to this will be ensuring the proportional representation of women’s interests in the Parliament. 

All the major political parties pledged to uphold the cause of female empowerment by signing the July Charter document, which was, in turn, approved by voters in a referendum held alongside the general election. The July Charter stated that political parties should nominate at least 5 percent women candidates for Parliament. However, all political parties fell short of upholding even this marginal percentage of representation in their nominations. As many as 30 political parties in Bangladesh nominated no women candidates in the elections. 

It should be noted that under the interim government there was lack of women representation in the National Consensus Commission. This lack of representation was seen during the discussions surrounding proposals of women’s reserved seats in parliament.

Newly elected Prime Minister Tarique Rahman of the BNP advocated for women’s rights in his campaign speeches. However, it remains to be seen how he negotiates with conservative elements of society, including the Jamaat-e-Islami, moving forward. 

For the younger generation that ushered in the new political age, the conduct of the election was a stepping stone toward creating a new political culture. The success of this reset will be measured by how well Bangladesh’s new politics keeps its promises to Bangladeshi women. 

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For a nation that has seen not one but two female prime ministers, the recently concluded elections showed a dismal reality. Although half of Bangladesh’s voters are women, the representation of women in politics continues to be low. Only 78 women candidates contested the February 12 elections, out of 1,981 candidates – a meager 3.93 percent. Just seven women actually won election, out of 300 directly elected seats.

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which won the elections handily, accounted for six of those women MPs – but it fielded only 10 women candidates for the elections out of the 300 contested constituencies. Only three women were sworn in as union ministers by the Tarique Rahman Cabinet, out of 50 Cabinet members in total. 

The present political landscape of Bangladesh reflects a nation at odds with women’s place in public life. This was most evident in the case of the National Citizen Party (NCP), formed by student leaders who led the uprising against the ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The NCP has few women leaders, although many women participated in the street protests of July-August 2024. The pre-poll alliance between NCP and Jamat-e-Islami (JI) was seen by many women leaders of the NCP as abandoning the cause of gender equality. 

Due to lack of support from their parties, many women who were formerly affiliated with various political parties – including the NCP – fought the elections independently. For example, Tasnim Jara, a former senior joint secretary of the NCP, contested the election independently from Dhaka-9 constituency. She announced her break from the NCP following its pre-poll alliance with the JI. 

Rumeen Farhana, one of the seven women elected to Parliament, had to contest as an independent after the BNP expelled her. She claimed the party was prioritizing male candidates over women.

The JI is perhaps the most alarming example. The Islamist party is perceived by many as inimical to women’s interests due its track record of conservative statements advocating for a restricted role of women in society. During the transition period under the interim government, there were multiple reports of local JI cadres opposing women’s participation in sports in rural areas. In the run-up to the elections, top leaders of the JI suggested that working hours for women be reduced, sparking much criticism. 

The JI fielded no women candidates at all, a disturbing reality for what is now Bangladesh’s largest opposition party, with 68 seats in Parliament. The JI contested 270 seats without putting forward a single woman.

The NCP, which won six seats, also has a troubling track record – even beyond its alliance with the JI. Reports of increased online attacks and cyber harassment against women by certain sections of the NCP and JI were cited by many female leaders of the NCP as antithetical to the values of the July-August protest. And some NCP leaders face charges of sexual misconduct. The NCP will need to do a course correction to regain the confidence of the women population and to emerge as a true representative of the values of gender equality it seeks to uphold. 

Political parties in Bangladesh have a long way to go in terms of ensuring internal democracy and representation of women within the party system.  

The durability of democratic reforms in Bangladesh will be determined by the inclusion of women in key institutions as well as the representation of women’s interests in the remaking of Bangladesh’s governance system. One of the first challenges to this will be ensuring the proportional representation of women’s interests in the Parliament. 

All the major political parties pledged to uphold the cause of female empowerment by signing the July Charter document, which was, in turn, approved by voters in a referendum held alongside the general election. The July Charter stated that political parties should nominate at least 5 percent women candidates for Parliament. However, all political parties fell short of upholding even this marginal percentage of representation in their nominations. As many as 30 political parties in Bangladesh nominated no women candidates in the elections. 

It should be noted that under the interim government there was lack of women representation in the National Consensus Commission. This lack of representation was seen during the discussions surrounding proposals of women’s reserved seats in parliament.

Newly elected Prime Minister Tarique Rahman of the BNP advocated for women’s rights in his campaign speeches. However, it remains to be seen how he negotiates with conservative elements of society, including the Jamaat-e-Islami, moving forward. 

For the younger generation that ushered in the new political age, the conduct of the election was a stepping stone toward creating a new political culture. The success of this reset will be measured by how well Bangladesh’s new politics keeps its promises to Bangladeshi women. 

Rituja Ghosh is an independent researcher based out of New Delhi. She holds a masters degree in International Relations from South Asian University, New Delhi. 

2026 Bangladesh elections

Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)

Bangladesh women in politics

Bangladesh women's rights

women's quota in Bangladesh

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