Six seats, big goals: What's next for Bangladesh's student-led NCP party?

"The NCP was formally launched in February 2025. Its leaders claimed broad public backing and strong electoral prospects, even hinting at forming a future government. But reality soon set in. Despite the momentum and widespread support the student leaders enjoyed during the uprising, the NCP could not organise itself into a grassroots organisation capable enough for an electoral race to the parliament on its own."

"Eventually, the NCP struck a deal with the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami party as a junior coalition partner, contesting just 30 of the 300 parliamentary seats and winning six. A coalition led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) swept the polls, winning a landslide 212 seats, while the Jamaat-led alliance secured 77."

"For their supporters, six seats represent an unlikely breakthrough for a nascent political party. For critics, however, the party's performance underscores the structural limits of the NCP's organizational capacity and electoral viability in Bangladesh's competitive political landscape."

The National Citizen Party (NCP) emerged from Bangladesh's 2024 student-led uprising that ousted longtime leader Sheikh Hasina. Formally launched in February 2025, the party initially claimed broad public backing and strong electoral prospects. However, the NCP struggled to organize into an effective grassroots organization capable of contesting independently. Opinion polls showed support in low single digits. The party ultimately formed a coalition with Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, contesting only 30 of 300 parliamentary seats and winning six. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led coalition won a landslide with 212 seats. Despite modest results, NCP supporters view the outcome as a breakthrough for a new party, while critics question the party's structural limitations and long-term viability.

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