Nepal's election system, explained: why no party has won a majority since 2017

Of the 275 seats in the House of Representatives, 165 are won in single-member constituencies and 110 are allocated from party lists in proportion to the national vote. (Election Commission of Nepal)

The list seats carry quotas for women, Dalits, indigenous nationalities, Madhesis and others, which is how the parliament came to look more like the country than its predecessors.

The arithmetic of coalitions

A party can sweep the constituencies and still fall short once the lists are counted. That makes a majority unlikely and a coalition the normal outcome, with the instability that follows when partners fall out.

Comparative indices rate the system's competitiveness well and its governments' stability poorly, which is roughly what the design predicts. (‘Democracy Index 2024’)