January 25: The election to pick the National Assembly members for the seats that will be vacant from March 4 is taking place today (Thursday). A total of 19 seats of the National Assebly will be vacant after the terms of the upper house menbers including National Assembly Chairman Ganesh Prasad Timilsina end  on March 4. 
As per the law, the election has to be held 35 days before the end of the tenure of the upper house members. The election which started at 9.00 am will conclude at 3.00 pm in the designated polling stations of the provinces.    
The province assembly members, rural municipality chairs and vice chairs, municipality mayors and deputy mayors will cast their votes in the election.    
The electoral collage comprises of members of the Province Assembly and chairperson and vice-chairperson of the rural municipality and mayor and deputy mayor of the municipality.    
The weightage of a vote of a Province Assembly member is 53 while it is 19 for a vote from chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the rural municipalities and mayors and deputy mayors of municipalities. With this, the total vote weightage will be 57,559.    
A total of 1,958 voters, including 549 provincial assembly members and chiefs and deputy chiefs of local levels, will cast their votes in the election.    
The Election Commission has said that it has already completed all necessary preparation for the election. -- RSS