KATHMANDU , Nepal ( CNN ) -- The leader of Nepal 's former communist rebels was named as the country 's new prime minister Friday . Prachanda is still the supreme commander of the Maoists People 's Liberation Army . Pushpa Kamal Dahal , also known as Prachanda , was elected four months after elections in which his Communist Party of Nepal ( Maoist ) became the largest party in the 601-member constituent assembly . Prachanda received 464 votes of the 577 votes cast , while his rival Sher Bahadur Deuba of the Nepali Congress party received 113 votes . Most of the parties in the assembly voted for the Maoist candidate . A simple majority was enough to be elected the prime minister . Prachanda 's victory became certain on Thursday when the third and fourth biggest parties in Nepal 's assembly decided to back him . He will now lead a coalition government , although talks are ongoing on about the allocation of ministerial portfolios . The Maoists signed a peace deal with the government in November 2006 , joined an interim parliament and government in 2007 and fought multi-party elections in April this year . The Communist Party of Nepal unexpectedly became the largest party in the elections , winning 220 of the 575 elected seats in the assembly . The assembly declared Nepal a republic in May and in July elected Nepal 's first president , physician Ram Baran Yadav . Prachanda , 54 , entered politics when he was 17 but went underground in 1981 , making his first public appearance after 25 years in 2006 . The Maoists launched an insurgency to abolish the monarchy in 1996 and the ten-year conflict claimed more than 13,000 lives . According to the peace deal agreed in 2008 , the estimated 19,602 Maoist combatants would be integrated into the country 's security structure , the process of which is yet to be worked out . Prachanda remains the supreme commander of the Maoists People 's Liberation Army . Besides completing the peace process , the new government has to face many challenges including inflation , lawlessness , impunity and ethnic aspirations .
Prasad , Communist Party of Nepal chairman , won 464 out of 577 seats . A simple majority was enough to be elected the prime minister . Assembly declared Nepal a republic in May and unanimously elected first president . The office of president is largely ceremonial . PM has executive powers .