The Election Commission (EC) will publish the final list of probable polling centres on August 27 as part of its preparations for the upcoming local government elections.
The process of determining polling centres has already begun, according to a letter signed by EC Senior Assistant Secretary Md Rashid Mia on Wednesday.
The letter said that, under the Polling Centre Establishment and Management Guidelines-2025 for Local Government Institution Elections, the final list of polling centres must be gazetted at least 25 days before polling for city corporation, municipality, union parishad, upazila parishad and zila parishad elections.
As per the schedule, the EC will publish the draft list of polling centres on August 10. Claims and objections may be submitted until August 18, while their disposal must be completed by August 23. After completing the required procedures, the commission will publish the final list of probable polling centres on August 27.
The EC has also instructed field-level election officials to maximise the use of existing infrastructure when selecting polling centres. Officials have been asked not to propose temporary polling rooms where permanent buildings have adequate space to accommodate polling booths.
The final list must be sent to the Election Support-3 Branch through the respective regional election officers. Both hard and soft copies of the list must also be submitted within seven days of the election schedule being announced, the letter said.
According to the EC's roadmap, Bangladesh has 4,580 union parishads, of which 3,981 are expected to be ready for elections this year. The remaining union parishads are expected to become election-ready in 2027 and 2028.
The roadmap also shows that the country has 330 municipalities, of which 320 are currently eligible for elections. The remaining 10 municipalities are not election-ready due to boundary disputes, voter list preparation, or pending legal cases.
.