Dharamshala: The Election Commission of the Central Tibetan Administration announced the elected members of the 18th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile on 13 May 2026 during a press conference held at the Lhakpa Tsering Hall following the successful completion of the two rounds of the Tibetan general election 2025–26.
Of the 45 members elected to the 18th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, 17 are newly elected members who did not serve in the 17th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile. The preliminary and final elections were held on 1 February and 26 April 2026, respectively, across 27 countries by a total of 1,737 election officers at 309 polling stations. The voter turnout in the preliminary round was 56.25 percent (51,140 voters), while the final round witnessed a participation rate of 45.71 percent (41,638 voters) out of a total registered electorate of 91,073. During the final round, a total of 570 ballots were rejected as invalid during the counting process.
During the press conference, Chief Election Commissioner Lobsang Yeshi disclosed that, over the course of the electoral period, 100 meetings were convened with Regional Election Officers and Observers at 55 different locations across seven countries. In addition, awareness and orientation training session was held in Dharamshala for India-based Local Tibetan Election Commissioners and Election Officers.
The Chief Election Commissioner, accompanied by Additional Election Commissioners Nangsa Choedon and Tsering Youdon, also addressed matters and concerns relating to the electoral process, including the initiatives and measures undertaken by the Election Commission to ensure the smooth and successful conduct of the election. These included the Commission’s efforts to explore possible measures to facilitate the participation of Tibetans serving in the Dhanglob in the Tibetan general election; the establishment of an additional 31 polling stations during the winter retail season for Tibetan sweater sellers; the successful conduct of polling for Tibetan residents in Russia through the assistance of a Tibetan sMenpa; the unprecedented conduct of polling for Tibetan residents in South Korea; and similar efforts undertaken for Tibetan residents in Hawaii, which ultimately could not be implemented due to logistical limitations.
According to them, the Election Commission also reached out to several individuals to encourage their participation in the electoral process in order to address the shortfall in the requisite number of candidates during the final round and to ensure the successful conduct of the election.
Before concluding the press conference, the trio expressed their sincere appreciation to all central and regional election officers and staff for their efforts in ensuring the smooth and successful conduct of the election; to the Kashag and the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile for their support and guidance; to CTA staff for their assistance; and to the general Tibetan public for their participation.
