Bihar Records Highest First-Phase Turnout in 74 Years; Polling Touches 64.66%

Patna, Nov 2025 : Bihar witnessed a historic voter turnout in the first phase of the Assembly elections on Thursday, with the Election Commission reporting an approximate turnout of 64.66% as of 8:15 p.m. Final figures are still being compiled, but early trends confirm that Phase I has registered the highest participation since the first Assembly elections in 1951.

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar congratulated the people of Bihar for turning out in unprecedented numbers and reaffirming their faith in the democratic process. He also lauded the poll staff across districts for conducting the massive electoral exercise with “transparency, dedication, and efficiency.”

Historic Surge in Turnout

Initial figures released by the Election Commission of India (ECI) indicate that Thursday’s turnout surpassed the first-phase voter percentages of the last three Assembly polls. The turnout stood at 56.1% in 2020, 55.9% in 2015, and 52.1% in 2010, all significantly lower than this year’s early estimates.

By 7 p.m., the turnout stood at 63.25%, an impressive jump from 60.13% recorded at 5 p.m., reflecting strong participation in the final hours of polling across the 121 constituencies that voted in this phase.

District-Wise Performance

Among the 18 districts that went to polls, Muzaffarpur emerged at the top with a remarkable 70.96% turnout by 7 p.m. Samastipur followed closely with 70.63%, while Begusarai recorded 68.26%.

Earlier, by 5 p.m., Begusarai had led the turnout charts at 68.26%, followed by Samastipur (66.65%) and Madhepura (65.74%). Within Begusarai, Bachhwara (AC 142) reported the highest early turnout of 69.67% at 5 p.m., reflecting energetic voter mobilization in the district.

Across the seven constituencies of Begusarai, Cherai-Bariarpur (AC 141) recorded 62.55% turnout by 3 p.m., ahead of Bachhwara (60.98%) and Teghra (AC 143) at 60.27%.

Turnout Trends Through the Day

Voter participation rose steadily as the day progressed:

• 11 a.m.: 27.65% average turnout
• 1 p.m.: 42.31%
• 3 p.m.: 53.77%
• 5 p.m.: 60.13%
• 7 p.m.: 63.25%
• 8:15 p.m.: 64.66% (provisional)

At 3 p.m., several districts reflected strong mid-day participation:

• Gopalganj: 58.17%
• Muzaffarpur: 58.40%
• Lakhisarai: 57.39%
• Samastipur: 56.35%
• Madhepura: 55.96%

By contrast, Patna district remained the slowest throughout, with only 48.69% turnout reported by 3 p.m., though numbers rose later in the day.

Massive Polling Exercise Across 18 Districts

The first phase covered a huge electorate across 18 districts, including Patna, Nalanda, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Saharsa, Samastipur, Saran, Siwan, Buxar, Bhojpur, Begusarai, Khagaria, Lakhisarai, Sheikhpura, Gopalganj, Vaishali, Munger, and Madhepura.

A total of 1,314 candidates—1,192 men and 122 women—are contesting in this phase.

The ECI stated that 3.75 crore voters are eligible to cast their ballots, consisting of:

• 1.98 crore men
• 1.76 crore women
• 758 third-gender voters

Polling was conducted across 45,341 stations, of which 36,733 are located in rural areas and 8,608 in urban centres.

Special Polling Arrangements

To promote inclusivity and accessibility, the ECI set up:

• 320 model polling stations
• 926 women-managed booths
• 107 booths operated entirely by persons with disabilities (PwDs)

Additionally, webcasting was enabled in all polling stations, giving election officials real-time monitoring capabilities across districts.

Security Arrangements and Early Checks

Over 15 battalions of state police and central paramilitary forces were deployed across sensitive and Naxal-affected regions to ensure peaceful polling. In such regions, voting concluded an hour earlier at 5 p.m. for security considerations.

Before the voting started at 7 a.m., mock polling exercises were conducted at every booth to validate the functioning of EVMs, VVPATs, and other systems in the presence of booth-level agents.

Smooth and Peaceful Polling Day

The first phase was largely peaceful, with no major incidents reported from any district. High early-morning enthusiasm, coupled with steady afternoon participation and a late-evening surge, contributed to what the Election Commission described as a “historic and encouraging” turnout.

With Phase I now completed, all eyes are on the subsequent rounds of polling as Bihar’s high-stakes electoral contest continues to unfold.