Bangladesh is set to hold a contested presidential election on 20 August 2025 — the first time in more than 35 years that the country's highest constitutional office will be decided by a ballot rather than an unopposed acclamation. The election will take place in the session chamber of the National Parliament Building in Dhaka, where members of parliament will vote by secret ballot, according to the Bangladesh Election Commission's schedule.

Why the Office Fell Vacant

The vacancy was triggered by the resignation of President Mohammed Shahabuddin on 24 July. Following his departure, Speaker of the National Parliament Hafiz Uddin Ahmed assumed the role of acting president. Under Bangladesh's Constitution, a presidential election must be held within 90 days of the office falling vacant, according to reports from Bangladeshi daily Dhaka Tribune.

Who Is Running

Both the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Jamaat-e-Islami-led 11-party alliance — the main opposition bloc in parliament — have decided to field candidates. Citing multiple party sources, Bangladesh's The Daily Star reported that BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, who also serves as Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister, is likely to be the BNP's presidential nominee. Fakhrul has reportedly signed the consent form for the nomination, with a formal announcement expected as early as Wednesday or Thursday.

BNP's Clear Parliamentary Advantage

Although the election will be contested, the BNP enters the race with a commanding numerical edge. In the 2026 parliamentary election, the BNP secured 210 seats against 77 seats won by the Jamaat-led 11-party alliance, giving the ruling party an outright majority in parliament — the body that elects the president.

What Legal and Civil Society Voices Say

Senior Supreme Court Appellate Division lawyer Advocate Manzil Morshed told Dhaka Tribune: 'The opposition knows that it will lose the election. Even then, fielding a candidate is a political strategy.' He added that the move may be designed to deflect accusations of non-participation: 'There is a discussion in the political arena that Jamaat and BNP are closely connected. They may have fielded a candidate merely as a showpiece so that no one can accuse them of not participating or raise questions about the matter.'

Election expert and founder of Dhaka-based civil society platform Shujan, Badiul Alam Majumdar, was more direct, saying: 'The presidential election is predetermined. Whoever the ruling party wants will become president.'

Historical Significance

Bangladesh last witnessed a contested presidential election before 1991, after which the practice of electing presidents unopposed became entrenched across successive governments. The return of a ballot contest — even one where the outcome is widely considered a foregone conclusion — marks a notable, if largely symbolic, departure from that pattern. Observers will watch whether the contest sets a precedent for greater institutional competition in future cycles.