Bihar Votes Again on November 11: Key Issues Shaping Phase Two of the 2025 Assembly Elections

Patna, Nov 2025 : With the first round of voting over and a voter turnout of 64.66%, Bihar now moves into the decisive second phase of polling on November 11. As the campaign noise falls silent on Sunday and the state enters the mandatory 48-hour quiet period, voters will carry with them the unresolved questions that have defined Bihar’s politics for decades.

Political parties have spent the past weeks offering competing visions, but the final verdict rests on how people interpret the state’s most persistent concerns. Here are the five issues that will weigh heavily on voters’ minds:

Migration: The Wound Bihar Still Feels

Migration has dominated the discourse like no other topic this season. Leaders across the spectrum—from Rahul Gandhi to Tejashwi Yadav to Prashant Kishor—have repeatedly highlighted why young people continue to leave Bihar in search of work, education, and healthcare.

Rahul Gandhi sharpened the debate by accusing the NDA of “reducing Biharis to the country’s labor force,” a statement that struck an emotional chord during several rallies. For many families, migration is not a statistic—it is a lived reality.

Employment: The Promise That Could Decide the Election

Jobs remain closely tied to the migration narrative. Both alliances have made ambitious commitments:

• NDA: Promise of 1 crore jobs and expansion of industries.
• Mahagathbandhan: A pledge of one government job per household.

Voters, particularly the youth, will be weighing these promises against years of unfulfilled expectations.

Education & Healthcare: Bihar’s Long Quest for Quality

Another recurring theme has been Bihar’s struggle to provide strong schooling and accessible medical care. Rahul Gandhi has argued that a state once known globally for centers like Nalanda University must rebuild its educational ecosystem and develop medical facilities robust enough to stop people from traveling to Delhi for treatment.

These concerns strongly resonate with students, parents, and the middle class—making them a key factor in this election.

Infiltration: NDA’s Central Campaign Narrative

While the opposition has pressed migration and employment, the NDA—led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi—has leaned heavily on the issue of illegal infiltration. The Prime Minister has accused the Congress-RJD alliance of encouraging infiltrators for “vote-bank politics.”

Whether this issue shapes voter sentiment or fades in comparison to bread-and-butter concerns remains to be seen after voting concludes.

Law and Order: The Return of the ‘Jungle Raj’ Debate

For nearly every NDA leader, the law-and-order pitch has been central to their rhetoric. Despite governing the state for almost two decades, NDA speakers have revisited the era of the RJD’s 1995–2005 rule—often described by them as “jungle raj.”

In recent speeches, PM Modi has intensified this attack, warning that a return of the RJD-Congress alliance would bring a rise in kidnappings, extortion, and violent crime. The phrase “jungle raj school” has become a campaign punchline for the NDA.

The Verdict Ahead

As Bihar prepares for the second phase, the silence period may pause the speeches, but the stakes remain loud and clear. Jobs, migration, education, healthcare, law and order, and demographic anxieties will all converge on November 11. What matters now is how voters weigh these competing priorities—and which promises they trust for the next five years.