KATHMANDU, Feb. 8 (Xinhuanet) -- The election to the municipalities under the local bodies of Nepal started Wednesday morning from 8 a.m. local time (0215GMT) across the country after eight years.

    Earlier, election to the Village Development Committees, Municipalities and the District Development Committees under the local bodies was held in 1998 for the second time after the reinstatement of multi-party democracy in the country in 1990.

    The local election, which was to take place in 2003, could not take place due to the political and security situation of the country.

    As all of the municipal posts in 22 of the 58 municipalities in 43 districts throughout the country were elected unopposed, election is being taken place only in 36 municipalities of 28 districts of the country.

    A total of 154 candidates are contesting for the posts of 34 mayors and 119 candidates for the posts of 25 deputy mayors in the 36 municipalities while 835 candidates are contesting for the posts of 197 ward chairmen, 1,139 candidates for the posts of 291 ward members and 361 woman candidates are contesting for the posts of 71 women ward members.

    Altogether 2,608 candidates are in the election fray. Out of 806 wards, election is taking place for 520 municipal wards.

    Earlier, a total of 1,277 office-bearers, including 24 mayors, 31 deputy mayors, 389 ward chairmen, 619 ward members and 214 women ward members have already been elected unopposed.

    No nomination have been filed for the 2,251 municipal posts as seven agitating political parties to actively boycott it and the anti-government guerrillas threats to disrupt it.

    Candidates of 22 out of the 72 political parties which had registered at the Election Commission for the purpose of the municipal elections are contesting the elections.

    Candidates of only the Rastriya Prajatantra Party and Nepal Sadbhavana Party, out of the four nationally recognized political parties, are taking part in the municipal elections. The other two nationally recognized political parties, Nepali Congress and Communist Party of Nepal United Marxist and Leninist, however, didnot apply for party registration for the purpose of the municipal election.

    Among the 58 municipalities in 43 districts in the country, one is a metropolitan city, four sub-metropolitan cities and 53 municipalities. Altogether 4,146 posts were vacant in these municipalities including 58 posts each of mayor and deputy mayor, 806 posts of ward chairmen and 3,224 posts of ward members with one woman ward member each at every ward.

    Several office-bearers of the municipality who were elected unopposed have already assumed office.

    The total number of voters in all the municipalities is 1,942,990, out of which 966,189 are female and 976,801 are males. Altogether 1,480,000 voters in 36 municipalities are exercising their voting rights in the municipal elections.

    Similarly, out of the 1,394 election centers throughout the country, there are 1,040 voting centers for today's election. Likewise, out of 8,800 employees who were to be deployed on election duty throughout the country, 7,700 employees are deployed on election duty for the municipal elections.

    Vote counting will start immediately after the ballot boxes are brought to the vote counting centers following the voting, Tej Muni Bajracharya, spokesman of the commission said. Enditem