Mizoram Assembly polls: A look at the success rate of female candidates in the state over the years

The Assembly elections in the northeastern state of Mizoram are scheduled for November 7. Candidates from all political parties have begun their election campaigns.

The results of the election are to be declared on December 3.

As the state nears its polling date, let us have a look at its brief election history when it comes to female representation in Assembly polls and the success rate of female candidates in the state over the years.

Out of 174 candidates contesting the November 7 Assembly polls, only 16 are women.

In 1987, Mizoram held its first Assembly elections after officially becoming a state from its earlier union territory status.

In a state with a 40-member constituency, the total number of nominated female candidates was four, out of which one won and got elected.

An independent candidate named Lalhlimpuii from the Aizawl North-I (ST) constituency was the first female MLA elected after Mizoram attained statehood in 1987.

Within 18 months of the election, some ruling party members defected as they were seeking cabinet positions. This defection reduced the government to a minority in the Assembly. In September 1988, the President's rule was imposed in Mizoram, and elections were scheduled for 1989.

In 1989, the total number of nominated female candidates was four; however, this year, none got elected.

In 1993, there were only three female candidates who were nominated; none of them won any seats.

The year 1998 saw a rise in the number of female candidates in the Assembly election, but sadly, even this year, not a single woman won the election.

Seven candidates were nominated in 2003, but no wins were registered.

In 2008, out of the nine nominated female candidates, none emerged victorious.

Similarly, out of the six female nominations in the year 2013, none of them won in the Assembly polls.

Nonetheless, Vanlalawmpuii Chawngthu's victory in the 2014 by-polls and her subsequent appointment as a minister three years later offered a ray of hope for Mizoram women. However, she lost the Hrangturzo seat in the 2018 elections, which resulted in the return of an all-male House in the Mizoram Assembly.

In the 2018 elections, only 17 out of 40 Assembly constituencies had female candidates. Nine ran as Independents, six as BJP candidates, and one each from Congress and NCP. The MNF did not nominate any female candidates for the election.