Bihar Assembly Elections 2025: How the state voted in last three polls

The Election Commission has announced on Monday, the schedule for the Bihar Assembly elections which will be held in two phases, on November 6 and 11 with the vote counting on November 14. 

In the current 243 member assembly, the NDA holds 131 seats, with the BJP holding 80, JD(U) 45, HAM(S) 4 and two independents. The term will end on November 22.

As Bihar gears up for another high-stakes contest, let's take a quick look back at how the past three elections - a decade long saga of shifting alliances, surprise results and political reinventions.

2010

In 2010 Assembly elections, the Janata Dal (United) [JD(U)] had emerged as the dominant force, winning 115 of the 141 seats it contested, securing 22.58 per cent of the vote share. Its ally, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), won 91 of 102 seats, with a 16.49 per cent vote share. The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), then in opposition, managed to win only 22 of the 168 seats it contested, with 18.84 per cent votes. The Congress secured just 4 seats out of 243, with a vote share of 8.37 per cent, while the CPI(ML)-Liberation contested 104 seats but failed to open its account, polling 1.79 per cent.

2015

The 2015 elections saw a major realignment, with JD(U), RJD, and Congress joining hands against the BJP. This alliance changed the state’s political landscape. RJD emerged as the single-largest party, winning 80 of 101 seats with 18.35 votes, while JD(U) bagged 71 seats out of 101, securing 16.83 per cent. The Congress also performed strongly by its standards, winning 27 of 41 seats with 6.66 per cent votes. The BJP, which fought alone, won 53 of 157 seats, despite getting the highest vote share of 24.42 per cent. The CPI(ML)-Liberation won 3 of the 98 seats it contested, with a 1.54 per cent share.

2020

In 2020, the BJP and JD(U) reunited as allies. The RJD, contesting separately, won 75 of 144 seats with 23.11 per cent votes, emerging as the single-largest party. The BJP followed closely, securing 74 of 110 seats with 19.46 per cent votes, while JD(U) managed 43 of 115 seats, its strike rate falling sharply despite a higher 32.83 per cent vote share. The Congress won 19 of 70 seats, polling 9.48 per cent, and the CPI(ML)-Liberation made significant gains, winning 12 of 19 seats with 3.16 per cent votes.