Bihar Election 2025 Phase 1: 13% Voter Turnout by 9 AM, Yadav Family Votes Together; Tej Pratap Absent

The first phase of the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections is underway, with 121 out of 243 constituencies voting across 18 districts. By 9:00 AM, voter turnout was recorded at 13.13%, with Saharsa reporting the highest participation at 15.27%, while Lakhisarai registered the lowest at 7%. In the state capital, Patna, voter turnout stood at 11.22%.

The Yadav family, including Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Tejashwi Yadav, cast their votes at a polling station in Patna and posed together for photographs. However, Tej Pratap Yadav, contesting from Mahua under his own party, was notably absent from the family photo.

This election phase sees a high-stakes triangular contest between the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the opposition Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance), and Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party, making its electoral debut. Key candidates in the fray include:

·         RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav (Raghopur)

·         Tej Pratap Yadav (Mahua)

·         BJP’s Samrat Choudhary (Tarapur) and Maithili Thakur (Alinagar)

·         JD(U)’s Anant Singh (Mokama)

A total of 3.75 crore voters are eligible to cast their ballots at 45,341 polling stations, with 36,733 in rural areas. Among the voters, 10.72 lakh are new electors, 7.37 lakh are aged 18-19 years, and 6,736 are over 100 years old. The electorate also includes 758 third-gender voters.

Phase 1 covers the districts of Patna, Darbhanga, Madhepura, Saharsa, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj, Siwan, Saran, Vaishali, Samastipur, Begusarai, Lakhisarai, Munger, Sheikhpura, Nalanda, Buxar, and Bhojpur.

The NDA, currently in power, comprises JD(U), BJP, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Hindustani Awam Morcha, and Rashtriya Lok Morcha. The opposition Mahagathbandhan includes RJD, Congress, CPI, CPI(ML) Liberation, CPI(M), and Vikassheel Insaan Party. The Jan Suraaj Party, led by Prashant Kishor, is contesting all 243 seats, aiming to make a strong debut.

Out of 1,314 candidates in this phase, 122 are women. The polling process also includes 320 model polling stations, 926 women-managed polling stations, and 107 stations managed by people with disabilities.

As voting continues until 6 PM (5 PM in some places), all eyes are on the turnout trends and early indications of how the political battle will unfold in Bihar’s first phase of elections.