The Election Commission (EC) has announced the schedule for the 13th National Parliament elections. According to the schedule, voting will be held on February 12.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) AMM Nasir Uddin announced the election schedule through a speech on Bangladesh Television and Bangladesh Betar on Thursday (December 11).

He said that the 13th National Parliament election for 300 seats and a referendum on the Constitutional Reform Implementation Order 2025 in accordance with the July National Charter will be held on February 12, 2026 (Thursday). The last date for submitting nomination papers for the election is December 29. The selection of nomination papers will be done from December 30 to January 4.

The CEC said that the last date for filing an appeal against the order of the Returning Officer with the commission is January 11. The date for disposal of appeals filed with the commission is January 12 to January 18. The last date for withdrawal of candidacy is January 20. The final list of candidates will be published and symbols will be allotted by the Returning Officer on January 21. The election campaign will continue from January 22 until 48 hours before the start of voting, that is, until 7:30 am on Tuesday, February 10.

Earlier, the Election Commission met the President at 12:30 pm on Wednesday. After the meeting with the President, the Chief Election Commissioner's speech was recorded at 4 pm, which was broadcast today.

Election Commissioner Md. Anwarul Islam Sarkar said that after the announcement of the schedule, about 20 circulars will be issued on various issues including seat allocation, notification of returning officers and assistant returning officers as per the law. Mobile courts, appointment of magistrates, appointment of electoral inquiry committees, appointment of judicial magistrates, formation of monitoring cells, formation of law and order cells - the formats for these are ready.

Incidentally, 12 parliamentary elections have been held since the country gained independence. In these elections, the Awami League won 6 times, the BNP four times, and the Jatiya Party won twice and formed the government. The Awami League won the first, seventh, ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth parliamentary elections; the BNP won the second, fifth, sixth, and eighth parliamentary elections; and the Jatiya Party won the third and fourth parliamentary elections.

Although the term of the parliament is five years, the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and twelfth parliaments could not complete their terms due to various reasons including political instability. However, the fifth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth and eleventh parliaments completed their terms.