Presidential election on 19 Feb

The country's 22nd presidential election will be held on 19 February from 2pm to 5pm, the Election Commission has announced.

Disclosing the schedule following an EC meeting on Wednesday morning, Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal said nomination papers will be taken on 12 February and reviewed the next day. The commission has set 14 February for withdrawing candidacy.

Earlier on Tuesday, CEC Kazi Habibul Awal met Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury to discuss the upcoming presidential polls.

According to the constitution, in the case of a vacancy in the office of President due to the expiration of his/her term, an election to fill the vacancy shall be held within the period of 90 to 60 days prior to the term expiry date.

The president is elected by the members of parliament. With the Awami League having an absolute majority in parliament, it is almost certain that its candidate will serve as the next head of state.

President Md Abdul Hamid was sworn in as the 20th president of Bangladesh on 24 April 2013. Since independence, 16 people have headed the state for 19 terms. Hamid is the 17th person to serve as president.

He, however, is the only one who was re-elected for a second term – in February 2018 – and he cannot be re-elected in line with the constitution.

Hamid's term will expire on 23 April, which means the election must be held between 24 January and 23 February.

Replying to a query, the CEC said the government did not approve the purchase of 2 lakh electronic voting machines (EVM) in the context of the country's overall economic situation. However, there is no despair about the project being put on hold.

He said the Election Commission will determine the number of constituencies that can use the currently available EVMs in the upcoming national election.