(TibetanReview.net, Aug13’25) – The Election Commission of the Central Tibetan Administration at Dharamshala, India, has announced Aug 13 that the process for the next elections of the Sikyong and the Tibetan Parliament in Exile (TPiE), both due in 2026, will be launched on Oct 1 with the appointment of two Additional Election Commissioners to assist the Chief Election Commissioner.
The electoral process will officially begin on the day the two Additional Election Commissioners take their oath of office. Arrangements have therefore been made for their appointment on Oct 1, 2025, after which they will formally assume their duties, said an announcement from the Tibetan Central Election Commission.
Once in office, the Central Election Commission will determine and announce the detailed schedule for both the preliminary and main election dates, the announcement further said.
The exile Tibetan elections are held in two stages: a preliminary poll in which voters propose candidates for the two elections. Any Tibetan voter can name any eligible Tibetan, up to a maximum number in each case, as candidates.
The candidates are then shortlisted and finalized by the Election commission after withdrawals, if any.
For the executive branch, only the Sikyong is elected. The elected Sikyong then proposes up to seven names for his ministerial colleagues, or Kalons, for confirmation by the TPiE.
A total of 46 members are elected for the TPiE, divided 10 each for the three traditional provinces of Tibet, two each for the five religious seats, and the remaining six geographically for Tibetans currently living outside India, Nepal and Bhutan.
Both the Sikyong and the TPiE members serve for a term of five years each. No Sikyong or Kalon can serve for more than two consecutive terms on the executive branch. The monastic communities can vote for their respective religious seats as well as for their provincial seats in the TPiE.