[1] Following mediation facilitated by the Southern African Development Community (SADC),[2] King Letsie III on the advice of the incumbent Prime Minister Tom Thabane, dissolved the Eighth Parliament and called a snap election.

[7] Following political tensions and the suspension of the National Assembly over the controversial change of the head of the army from Lieutenant General Kennedy Tlali Kamoli to Lieutenant General Maaparankoe Mahao, an attempted coup d'état [citation needed] forced Prime Minister Tom Thabane to flee the country.

Under the auspices of the SADC, mediation led by South African Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa resulted in a call for an early election.

On 17 October, the National Assembly reconvened in a bid to avert the political crisis, with Thabane's advisor Tumisang Mosotho saying "It’s a milestone.

[10] The 120 members of the National Assembly were elected in two groups using a mixed single vote with seat linkage system for mixed-member proportional representation.