Bihar witnessed a voter turnout of 60.13% in the first phase of the 2025 Assembly Elections, held across 121 constituencies on Thursday. The polling, which began at 7 AM and concluded at 6 PM, remained largely peaceful amid tight security arrangements.
The elections mark a crucial triangular contest between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janata Dal (United)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Indian National Congress (INC)-led Mahagathbandhan, and Prashant Kishor&rsquo;s Jan Suraaj Party, which is making its electoral debut.
<h3 data-start="856" data-end="895">High Turnout Across Key Districts</h3>
As per data from the Election Commission, Begusarai recorded the highest voter turnout at 67.32%, while Sheikhpura registered the lowest at 52.36% till 5 PM. Voters across 18 districts, including Patna, Darbhanga, Saharsa, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj, Siwan, Saran, Vaishali, Begusarai, Nalanda, and Buxar, exercised their franchise.
A total of 3.75 crore voters decided the fate of 1,314 candidates, of whom 122 are women and 1,192 are men. Among the registered voters, 1.98 crore were male, 1.76 crore female, and 758 identified as third gender. Notably, 10.72 lakh voters were casting their vote for the first time.
Polling took place at 45,341 polling stations, with 36,733 located in rural areas and 8,608 in urban centers. The Election Commission also set up 320 model polling booths, 926 all-women-managed booths, and 107 polling stations managed entirely by people with disabilities.
<h3 data-start="1876" data-end="1915">Key Contests and Political Stakes</h3>
Several high-profile candidates are in the fray in this first phase.
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Tejashwi Yadav of RJD, the Mahagathbandhan&rsquo;s CM face, is contesting from Raghopur, a seat he had previously won, against BJP&rsquo;s Satish Kumar, who had defeated Yadav&rsquo;s mother Rabri Devi in 2010.
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<li style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;" data-start="2200" data-end="2407">
Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary (BJP) is contesting from Tarapur, while Tej Pratap Yadav, Tejashwi&rsquo;s brother, is fighting from Mahua under his own outfit, Janshakti Janata Dal.
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<li style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;" data-start="2408" data-end="2526">
JD(U)&rsquo;s Anant Singh, currently lodged in jail in connection with a murder case, is contesting from Mokama.
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<li style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;" data-start="2527" data-end="2589">
BJP&rsquo;s Maithili Thakur is contesting from Alinagar.
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</ul>
The NDA comprises JD(U), BJP, LJP (Ram Vilas), Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM), and Rashtriya Lok Morcha, while the Mahagathbandhan alliance includes RJD, INC, CPI, CPI(M-L), CPI(M), and Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP). The Jan Suraaj Party, led by Prashant Kishor, has fielded candidates on all 243 seats, making this election a three-cornered contest.
The remaining two phases of polling will be conducted later this month, with vote counting scheduled for December 3, 2025.

121 constituencies voted in first phase amid a triangular fight

Bihar Phase 1 Polls Record 60% Turnout

121 constituencies voted in first phase amid a triangular fight

November 7, 2025 | 24:51 IST