Votes are still being counted but rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah has taken a decisive early lead in Nepal's general election which would put him on track to become the country's next prime minister.
Thursday's election saw Shah - who until January was the mayor of the capital, Kathmandu - up against other contenders including former prime minister KP Oli from the Communist Party of Nepal UML, as well as Gagan Thapa from the Nepali Congress.
By Friday evening local time, election officials said votes counted so far showed Shah's centrist Rastriya Swatantra Party, or RSP (National Independent Party), was ahead in more than two-thirds of the 165 directly elected seats, BBC Nepali reported.
The Nepali Congress, is a long way behind in second and the UML in third.
Full results may not come before next week. Vote counting is traditionally slow in Nepal, a mountainous country, and helicopters have to be used to gather ballots in the more remote regions, so it could take days before the final outcome is known.
