FACTBOX-Who is contesting Nepal's polls and what is at stake?

Rastriya Swatantra Party election candidate Balendra Shah (R) lines up outside a polling station to vote during Nepal's parliamentary election in Kathmandu on March 5, 2026. - AFP

KATHMANDU: Nepal votes in a general election on Thursday (Mar 5), its first since deadly youth-led anti-graft protests toppled the government of then-Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli in September.

Here is a look at the key contenders, and what is at stake.