As Bihar enters into the much-awaited two-phased 2025 Assembly Elections, in the first phase, polls will be held in 121 out of the total 243 assembly constituencies across 18 districts. A battle begins between Bharatiya Janata Party and Janata Dal (United) led-National Democratic Alliance, Rashtriya Janata Dal and Indian National Congress-led Mahagathbandhan (or Grand Alliance) and Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party.

Voting began at 7 am on Thursday, November 6 which continue till 6 pm. In some places, however, the voting will end an hour earlier, at 5 pm. At least 13 percent of the votes were cast in the state till 9 am. The first phase of voting is a test of the NDA alliance.

Begusarai registered highest turnout while Patna reported lowest till 11 am
As of 11:00 am, Bihar recorded an overall voter turnout of 27.65% in the first phase of polling. Among the districts, Begusarai registered the highest turnout at 30.37% and state capital Patna reported the lowest at 23.71%.

Battle of heavyweights

A total of 15 ministers of the Nitish government have entered the field in this phase. Among them are Samrat Chowdhury (Tarapur) and Vijay Kumar Sinha (Lakhisarai). Singer Maithili Thakur is contesting for the BJP from Alinagar. Former MLA ‘Baahubali’ Anant Singh is contesting on a JDU ticket from Mokama. He is accused of murdering Jan Suraaj worker Dularchand Yadav.

The fate of several heavyweight candidates will be tested on Thursday. Among them is Tejashwi Yadav, the chief ministerial candidate of the Mahagathbandhan. Arun Kumar Sah is one of the faces of the RJD in Tarapur seat. Lalu Prasad Yadav’s eldest son Tej Pratap Yadav is also contesting from Mahua constituency. Several ministers of the state are facing a test of their fortunes today.

PM Modi to Bihar voters: First vote, then refreshments!

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday morning gave a message on social media – ‘festival of democracy’.

“Today marks the first phase of the celebration of democracy in Bihar. I urge all voters in this phase of the assembly elections to cast their votes with full enthusiasm. On this occasion, my special congratulations to all my young friends in the state who are casting their votes for the first time. Remember: first vote, then refreshments!” he wrote in an X post.

In a separate X post, PM Modi announced, “The grand festival of democracy in Bihar is witnessing an amazing enthusiasm among the people, which indicates that the NDA is going to get an unprecedented majority in the assembly elections. In this energetic atmosphere, I am eager to receive the blessings of my family members at the public meetings in Forbesganj, Araria around 11:30 AM and in Bhagalpur around 1:30 PM.”

Lalu family votes

Lalu Prasad Yadav’s entire family was spotted voting early morning on Thursday. RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav voted with his wife Rajshree Yadav in Patna. After voting, Lalu and his son said that they are optimistic about the victory of the opposition alliance ‘Mahagathbandhan’. RJD chief and former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav voted at a booth in Patna with his wife Rabri Devi. After voting, Lalu said, ‘Change will happen’. When quizzed which of her two sons she is supporting, Rabri Devi told reporters that she sends best wishes for both her sons.

First election in Bihar after SIR

This is the first election in Bihar after the Special Intensive Revision (SIR). The Election Commission has claimed that tight security arrangements have been made for the first phase of voting so that the entire election process can be conducted smoothly. In total, voting is happening in 45,000 booths. There are no reports of unrest so far.

Voting is underway in Patna, Darbhanga, Madhepura, Saharsa, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj, Siwan, Saran, Vaishali, Samastipur, Begusarai, Lakhisarai, Munger, Sheikhpura, Nalanda, Buxar and Bhojpur districts. RJD has a good influence in the districts of central Bihar.

Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party has the most candidates out of the 121 seats in the first phase of voting. Prashant Kishor’s party has fielded candidates in 118 seats. JDU has fielded the most candidates within the NDA. Nitish Kumar’s JDU is contesting in 57 seats. BJP is contesting in 48 seats. Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) is contesting in 13 seats.

On the other hand, RJD has the most candidates in the India alliance. Lalu Prasad Yadav’s party is contesting in 72 seats. Congress is contesting in 24 seats. Liberation is contesting in 18 seats. The number of voters in the first phase is more than 3 crore 75 lakh. In the second and final phase, voting will be held in 122 assembly seats in Magadhabhum on November 11. The counting will be held on November 14.

Notable candidates in phase one

Among the notable candidates in the first phase are Tejashwi Yadav (Raghopur), the younger son of RJD chief Lalu Prasad and the leader of the opposition in Bihar. Other notable names include Lalu’s ‘rebel’ elder son and Janshakti Janata Dal founder-chief Tej Pratap Yadav (Mahua), two BJP deputy chief ministers of Bihar – Samrat Chaudhary (Tarapur) and Vijay Kumar Sinha (Lakhisarai), Bhojpuri singer Maithili Thakur (Alinagar) who joined the BJP, Bhojpuri singer and actor Khesari Lal Yadav (RJD, Chhapra).

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