The ruling NDA surged ahead in the Bihar Assembly Election trends on Friday, leading in 111 seats, while the opposition INDIA bloc was ahead in 33, according to the Election Commission’s website.
The BJP led in 48 seats, JD(U) in 44, LJP (Ram Vilas) in 13, and HAM in three.
On the opposition side, the RJD led in 23 seats, the Congress in seven, and the Vikassheel Insaan Party in one. The Plurals Party and an independent candidate were also leading in one seat each.
This year’s Bihar elections made history with a record voter turnout of 66.91%, the highest since 1951. The state also witnessed its highest-ever participation of women voters, with 71.6% turning out to vote, compared to 62.8% men.
The massive election exercise involved 8.5 lakh polling staff, 1.4 lakh polling agents, and hundreds of observers from the Election Commission. For the first time, Bihar also welcomed 16 international delegates as observers. The counting of votes began at 8 a.m.
The results are expected to reflect a tough contest between the JD(U)-led NDA and the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan. While the NDA is confident of crossing the 200-seat mark, the Mahagathbandhan says Tejashwi Yadav will “break Nitish Kumar’s streak” and take oath as chief minister.
Exit polls have widely predicted a strong NDA victory, giving little space to Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party. Tejashwi Yadav, however, accused pollsters of “following BJP’s directions” and pressuring the Election Commission to tilt the results in the NDA’s favour.
The campaign period was marked by bitter exchanges, with both alliances trading accusations over crime, corruption, governance, and even personal matters. Several high-profile murders in the state triggered a fierce “jungle raj” debate.
