Bhutan's People's Democratic Party wins general elections

Bhutan's People's Democratic Party, or PDP, has won the landlocked Himalayan kingdom's general elections, according to results released by the Election Commission of Bhutan on Wednesday.

The party, led by former prime minister Tshering Tobgay, is set to form a new government soon.

During the final round of Bhutan's fourth National Assembly elections, held on Tuesday, the PDP clinched a majority of 30 seats, while the Bhutan Tendrel Party, or BTP, won the other 17 seats of 47 constituencies. In Bhutan, a party has to win an overall majority of at least 24 constituencies to form a government.

Tobgay, 58, who served as the country's prime minister from 2013 to 2018, will become the new prime minister and serve a second five-year term.

The PDP has promised to implement plans for a major economic boost and reduce unemployment in various sectors over the next five years, local media reported.

The PDP's manifesto also vowed to develop mini-industrial estates and explore the possibility of creating infrastructure links to boost exports.

Bhutan, a landlocked country with a population of around 800,000, is known for its Gross National Happiness Index, which was formally adopted as a development indicator in the country's 2008 constitution.

Tobgay's victory was widely welcomed at home and abroad.

"Heartiest congratulations to my friend (Tshering Tobgay) … and the People's Democratic Party for winning the parliamentary elections in Bhutan," wrote Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

"Both parties have similar manifestos, but we wanted an experienced party in times of an economic downturn," CB Lama, a 69-year-old voter, told the national newspaper Kuensel.

The BTP did well in eastern Bhutan, but the PDP secured more seats in western, southern and central Bhutan, said Yeshi Lhendup, a senior program officer at the Department of Macro-Fiscal and Development Finance in Bhutan's Ministry of Finance.

"I think overall the voters chose well a prime minister who has the capacity and proven quality to meet the grave challenges that the nation faces in both social and economic anxieties," Lhendup told China Daily.

However, Lhendup said the election result is just the "beginning".

Tobgay has monumental challenges ahead to prove himself, Yeshi said. "I hope he has a capable cabinet team, and will refrain from the politics of regionalism," he said.

Bhutan held elections for the first time in 2008 after political reforms established a bicameral parliament soon after the start of the reign of King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck.

The PDP, formed by Tobgay in 2007, has been declared as the ruling party and the BTP declared as the opposition party, according to the election commission.

China and Bhutan have yet to establish diplomatic ties, but Chinese Vice-President Han Zheng met with visiting Bhutanese Foreign Minister Tandi Dorji in Beijing last October.

Both sides agreed to accelerate the boundary demarcation process and the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Xinhua contributed to this story.