How numbers stack up for Presidential election

The massive victories in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand have given Prime Minister Narendra Modi a free hand to choose a President of his choice after Pranab Mukherjee completes his tenure in July.

After the recent round of elections, the BJP and its allies have a vote value of nearly 5.32 lakh in the electoral college for the Presidential elections, just about 17,500 short of the half way mark.

Support from the BJD and the AIADMK will take the vote value to 6,28,195. A vote value of 5,49,442 is enough to elect the President in the electoral college.

The electoral college which elects the President comprises 4,896 legislators — 776 Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members and 4,120 MLAs. Nominated members, and members of legislative council are not eligible to vote in the Presidential election.

The value of each vote of a member of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha has been fixed at 708, while the vote value of an MLA depends on the population of the state he represents.

The value of the vote of an MLA is equivalent to the population of the state divided by the number of elected legislators divided, yet again, by 1,000.

The population of the state is ascertained as per the 1971 census. Accordingly, an MLA from Uttar Pradesh has the highest vote value — 208, while the vote value of an MLA from Sikkim is 7.

Vote value goes up
The massive victory in Uttar Pradesh for BJP and its allies — totalling 325 MLAs — has boosted the BJP’s kitty by a vote value of 57,200. In the outgoing Assembly, the BJP had 50 seats.

After Saturday’s results, the BJP and its allies have a vote value of 5,31,954 — still 17,488 short of the magic figure of 5,49,442 that translates into a simple majority in the Presidential election.

AIADMK and BJD, parties that have been favourably disposed towards the BJP, will give Modi the handle to cross the half-way mark comfortably. The vote value of 134 AIADMK MLAs works out to 23,584. The vote value of 50 AIADMK MPs – 37 Lok Sabha and 13 Rajya Sabha — works out to 35,400.

Similarly, 117 BJD MLAs’ vote value works out to 17,433 and that of 28 MPs — 20 Lok Sabha and eight Rajya Sabha — works out to be 19,824.