The first phase of the Bihar Legislative Assembly elections concluded on Thursday with a record voter turnout of 64.66%, the highest ever in the state’s electoral history. The Election Commission of India (ECI) hailed the landmark figure as a reflection of voters’ faith in democracy and the success of several new voter-friendly initiatives introduced this year.
Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, along with Election Commissioners Dr. Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Dr. Vivek Joshi, monitored the polling process throughout the day via 100% live webcasting, implemented for the first time in Bihar. The CEC personally interacted with presiding officers and district election officers from the ECI control room to ensure smooth conduct of polling.
Polling was held across 121 Assembly Constituencies in 18 districts, covering over 3.75 crore voters. More than 4 lakh polling personnel were deployed, with all reaching their respective stations by late Wednesday night. Mock polls were completed before 7 AM, and voting commenced simultaneously at all 45,341 polling stations.
In a major milestone for electoral transparency, Bihar also hosted 16 international delegates from six countries—South Africa, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Belgium and Colombia—as part of the International Election Visitors’ Programme (IEVP). The observers commended Bihar’s polling process as “one of the most transparent, efficient and participative” globally.
Among notable innovations, voters experienced coloured candidate photographs on EVM ballot papers, redesigned Voter Information Slips for better readability, and mobile deposit facilities at polling stations. Each polling centre was capped at 1,200 voters to prevent overcrowding.
In an inclusive step, over 90,000 Jeevika Didis (female volunteers) were deployed along with Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) personnel to assist Purdahnasheen women voters. All polling stations were equipped with wheelchairs, and E-rickshaws were provided to assist persons with disabilities (PwDs) in reaching polling booths.
Presiding Officers updated turnout data in real-time through ECINet, ensuring minimal delay in compiling final figures. According to the Commission, figures are based on updates received till 8:15 PM, with reports from 1,570 polling stations still pending.
The ECI noted that the turnout surpassed the previous Assembly election record of 62.57% in 2000, marking a new high in Bihar’s democratic journey.
