A total of 175 candidates have withdrawn their names from the proportional representation lists submitted to the Election Commission for the House of Representatives election, officials said on Monday.

According to the commission, the withdrawals involve candidates from 17 different political parties. The number is largely attributed to the unification of the Loktantrik Samajwadi Party (LSP) and the Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP), after which 110 proportional candidates from the LSP withdrew their nominations.

As per the election schedule, political parties submitted their closed lists of proportional representation candidates to the commission on December 28 and 29. A total of 64 parties, contesting the election under 58 different election symbols, had filed their lists.

Overall, 3,424 candidates were included in the proportional representation closed lists across all parties.

The Election Commission has stated that parties may submit replacement names for the vacant positions between January 14 and 16. The replacements must come from the same inclusive group as the candidates who withdrew, in line with proportional representation requirements.