1986 Bangladeshi general election

none February 2026 Bangladesh parliamentary 1979 Bangladeshi general election 1979 1988 Bangladeshi general election 1988 7 May 1986 List of members of the 2nd Jatiya Sangsad List of members of the 3rd Jatiya Sangsad 300 of the 330 seats in the Jatiya Sangsad 151 47,305,886 61.10% ( 9.81pp) President Hussain Mohammad Ershad of Bangladesh arrives for a state visit (cropped).jpeg H. M. Ershad Jatiya Party (Ershad) – Did not contest 153 New 12,079,259 42.34% Defense.gov News Photo 001017-D-9880W-025 (cropped).jpg Sheikh Hasina Awami League 54 seats Dhaka-10 76 37 7,462,157 26.16% 1986 Bangladeshi general election.svg Results by constituency Prime minister Prime Minister after election Post vacant Mizanur Rahman Chowdhury Jatiya Party (Ershad) General elections were held in Bangladesh on 7 May 1986. A total of 1,527 candidates contested the elections.Bangladesh Inter-Parliamentary Union The result was a victory for the Jatiya Party, which won 153 of the 300 directly elected seats. Voter turnout was 61%.Dieter Nohlen Dieter Nohlen Florian Grotz Christof Hartmann 2001 Elections in Asia: A data handbook I 536 0-19-924958-X Bangladesh Nationalist Party, the winner of the previous elections, boycotted the election. British observers including a journalist termed the elections a "tragedy for democracy" and a "cynically frustrated exercise".Liton Shakhawat 28 August 2010 Ershad's desperate bids go in vain http://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-152587 The Daily Star (Bangladesh) Background In 1982 a coup d'état led by Army Chief Hussain Muhammad Ershad overthrew democratically elected President Abdus Sattar, suspended the Constitution and imposed martial law. Parliament was dissolved and all political parties and activities were banned. Ershad appointed Justice A. F. M. Ahsanuddin Chowdhury as President on 27 March 1982, a position which he held until December 1983 when Ershad assumed the presidency himself.Bangladesh Leader in Military Regime Assumes Presidency https://www.nytimes.com/1983/12/12/world/bangladesh-leader-in-military-regime-assumes-presidency.html The New York Times 12 December 1983 In 1983 Ershad promised to hold presidential elections in May 1984 and to restore parliamentary government the following year. However, neither elections were held until 1986. Amid increasing opposition from the general public, Ershad aimed to legitimise his regime by holding a referendum in March 1985.https://www.upi.com/Archives/1985/03/21/Bangladesh-holds-referendum-on-military-rule/2820480229200/ Bangladesh holds referendum on military rule UPI en 29 December 2018 The official result of the referendum was overwhelmingly in support of his regime; however, there were allegations of large-scale vote rigging.https://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-152587 Ershad's desperate bids go in vain 28 August 2010 The Daily Star en 29 December 2018 Ershad planned to hold a presidential election in early 1986 but was faced with vigorous opposition from the Bangladesh Awami League-led eight-party alliance, Bangladesh Nationalist Party-backed seven-party alliance and the left-leaning five-party alliance, who demanded the lifting of martial law and the holding of parliamentary elections prior to a presidential election. Conceding to opposition demands general elections were scheduled for 7 May 1986. On 1 January 1986 Ershad formed Jatiya Party to represent his interests in the elections. The winner of the previous elections, the BNP, boycotted the elections but the Awami League and the majority of other political parties contested. At the time of elections martial law was still in place and Ershad was still Army Chief. Results The result was a victory for Ershad's Jatiya Party, which won a simple parliamentary majority with 153 of 300 seats.Government of Bangladesh 1991 A Background Paper on Bangladesh Parliamentary Elections. Dhaka: Press Information Department (Handout No. 429) However, the result was controversial, with Awami League accusing the Jatiya Party of election rigging and a British team of observers - consisting of a former Labour Party minister, a Conservative Party lawmaker and a BBC journalist - terming the elections a "tragedy for democracy" and a "cynically frustrated exercise". File:Bangladesh Jatiya Sangsad 1986.svg General Women Total +/– Jatiya Party 12079259 153 30 183 New Awami League 7462157 76 0 76 +37 Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami 1314057 10 0 10 New Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (Rab) 725303 4 0 4 New Bangladesh Muslim League 412765 4 0 4 +4 Oikya National Awami Party 369824 5 0 5 +5 Communist Party of Bangladesh 259728 5 0 5 +5 Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (Siraj) 248705 3 0 3 New National Awami Party (Muzaffar) 202520 2 0 2 +1 Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Awami League 191107 3 0 3 New Workers Party of Bangladesh 151828 3 0 3 New Bangladesh Khilafat Andolan 123306 0 0 0 New Jana Dal 98100 0 0 0 New Bangladesh Nagarik Sanghati 68290 0 0 0 New Islami Jukta Front 50509 0 0 0 New Jatiya Janata Party (Odud) 46704 0 0 0 New Bangladesh Samyabadi Dal (M-L) 36944 0 0 0 New Gano Azadi League 23632 0 0 0 0 Bangladesh Islamic Andolan 22931 0 0 0 New Jamaaiatay Olamaya Islam 5676 0 0 0 New Jamaaiatay Olamaya Islam-Nizam-e-Islam Party 5572 0 0 0 New Pragotishil Jatiyatabadi Dal 2997 0 0 0 New Jatiya Janata Party (Sujat) 1988 0 0 0 New Bangladesh Jayita League 1985 0 0 0 –2 Bangladesh Hindu Oikkya Front 1338 0 0 0 New Jatiyatabadi Ganatantrik Dal 149 0 0 0 0 Young Muslim Society 141 0 0 0 New Bangladesh Islamic Republican Party 110 0 0 0 New Independents 4619025 32 0 32 +16 0 377209 47305886 Nohlen et al., IPU, Government of Bangladesh Aftermath In August 1986 Ershad resigned from military service and a presidential election was held in October 1986, in which Ershad was declared victorious. However the elections were controversial as they were boycotted by all major opposition candidates and there were reports of irregularities.Bangladesh Chief Claims Vote Victory https://www.nytimes.com/1986/10/17/world/bangladesh-chief-claims-vote-victory.html The New York Times 17 October 1986 In November 1986 the second session of the third parliament was used for passing the constitution's seventh amendment bill, which primarily protected Ershad and his regime from prosecution for actions taken under his years of military rule, and on 11 November martial law was lifted.https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1986/11/11/martial-law-ends-in-bangladesh/2be0301b-5fc2-4e63-93d8-ff368b939a3b/ Martial Law Ends in Bangladesh 11 November 1986 The Washington Post 29 December 2018 en-US 0190-8286 In July 1987 the opposition parties united in opposition of government policies. Ershad declared a state of emergency in November, dissolved parliament in December, and scheduled new parliamentary elections for March 1988. References General Category:General elections in Bangladesh Bangladesh Bangladesh Category:Hussain Muhammad Ershad