Balendra Shah

Profile Overview

Balendra Shah (born 27 April 1990) is a Nepali politician, structural engineer, and rapper who has served as the prime minister of Nepal since 2026. At age 36, he is the world's youngest serving state leader. He assumed office following his party's landslide victory in the 2026 general election. Shah is the member of parliament for Jhapa 5 and was the mayor of Kathmandu from 2022 to 2026, the first independent politician to hold that office.
A structural engineer and rapper, Shah entered politics in 2022 as mayor of Kathmandu. He emerged as a prominent political figure during the 2025 Gen Z protests and in January 2026, he resigned as Mayor of Kathmandu and joined the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) to contest the 2026 general election as the party's prime ministerial candidate. He defeated former prime minister K. P. Sharma Oli in Jhapa 5 ending the latter's long-term dominance in the constituency.
Under Shah's premiership, the RSP government has initiated a "100-Point Charter of Governance", restructured the administration, and prioritized service delivery and anti-corruption. Despite criticism regarding his refusal to address the public, Shah remains a popular figure with over three-fourths of participants in an OnlineKhabar survey rating his government's performance over the first 100 days positively.