Skip to Content
Pop CultureNepalSep 12, 2025

Nepal Swears in Interim Prime Minister Elected on Discord

The election comes after a series of protests took down the country’s government.

By Lucas Wisenthal
Photo by Ritesh Shukla/Getty Images

Nepal on Friday swore in its first female leader, an interim prime minister elected through a vote on Discord, the New York Times reports.

The election of Sushila Karki came at the end of a week of protests over a ban on social media and government corruption. Led by students calling themselves Gen Z, the movement took shape online and turned deadly as it moved to the streets, with at least 51 people losing their lives. Nepal’s Kathmandu parliament was burned to the ground, and on Tuesday, its prime minister, K.P. Sharma Oli, resigned.

What’s been called an “informal” vote for the interim prime minister took place on Discord, with protesters showing their support for Karki, a 73-year-old former chief justice who has long railed against corruption. Her swearing-in was held at the president’s office, also damaged during the protests.

Karki is expected to form a cabinet and call for elections “after six, seven, eight months,” an adviser said.

The Latest
Tagged

Related Stories