The Election Commission of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) on Wednesday announced the results of the elections to the 18th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, marking a significant political transition with the induction of 17 newly elected representatives.
Chief Election Commissioner Lobsang Yeshi declared the results during a press conference attended by Additional Election Commissioners Nangsa Choedon and Tsering Youdon.
Addressing the media, Yeshi said the election reflected a major generational and political shift within the Tibetan democratic system. A total of 45 members have been elected to the new Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile.
Meanwhile, Penpa Tsering has already been elected as the Sikyong (President) of the CTA after securing more than 60 per cent votes in the preliminary round.
The polling process was conducted in two phases — the preliminary round on February 1 and the final round on April 26 — across 27 countries where Tibetan communities are settled. The election exercise was managed by 1,737 election officials through 309 polling stations established worldwide.
According to the Election Commission, the preliminary phase recorded a voter turnout of 56.25 per cent, with 51,140 Tibetans casting their votes. In the final phase, 41,638 voters participated, accounting for a turnout of 45.71 per cent out of 91,073 registered voters.
Yeshi said the commission conducted nearly 100 meetings with regional election officers and observers to ensure smooth and transparent elections. Special measures were also introduced to improve participation among Tibetans living in remote regions and seasonal workers, including additional polling stations for Tibetan sweater sellers and voting arrangements for Tibetans residing in countries such as Russia and South Korea.
