Santosh Kunwar and his entire panel have been elected in the recent Non-Resident Nepali Association (NRNA) Australia elections held on Saturday.

Kunwar won the presidential post with 6,839 votes, defeating Sanjeev Gorkhali Dhakal from Northern Territory, who received 2,126 votes, and Bhairav Dhakal from Perth, who secured 3,727 votes. Out of 16,121 registered voters across Australia, 13,701 ballots were cast.

Kunwar, who previously served as general secretary of NRNA Australia, held multiple positions within the organisation, including state coordinator (2017–2019), ICC member (2019–2021), and Oceania Regional deputy coordinator (2021–2023).

After the win, Kunwar announced plans to secure AUD 2 million in funding and attract grants from federal and state governments.

In other results, Babin Mishra was elected vice president with 7,261 votes, defeating Ramesh Poudel who received 4,619 votes. Mishra currently serves as the spokesperson of NRNA Australia.

Chunamani Sapkota from Canberra was elected General Secretary with 7,030 votes. His closest rivals were Bharatmani Devkota from Sydney, who received 3,253 votes, and Arjun Gautam, the current Treasurer, who secured 1,814 votes.

Nijan Chaulagai won the post of Treasurer with 7,087 votes, defeating Luna Siwakoti, who received 4,756 votes.

Kunwar has announced his intention to expand events such as the Nepal Festival and sports programmes, and to prioritise the completion of a proposed Nepali Multicultural Centre in Australia.