The 2025 Bihar assembly elections have left political analysts, party strategists, and voters alike with plenty to chew on. While the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) swept the polls with a commanding 202 out of 243 seats, a closer look at the numbers and stories behind the headlines reveals a far more nuanced picture—one shaped by high voter turnout, the subtle power of women voters, the surprising impact of the NOTA (None of the Above) option, and the enduring debate over the role of freebies in Indian democracy.
According to data released by the Election Commission of India on November 20, 2025, the NDA’s landslide was underpinned by several intriguing trends. Women voters turned out in record numbers, with constituencies like Thakurganj seeing a remarkable 90% turnout among women, a seat ultimately won by the Janata Dal (United), or JDU. Pranpur followed closely with 89% women turnout, and the BJP claimed victory there. Yet, the relationship between high women turnout and party success was anything but straightforward. As reported by The Times of India, Asaduddin Owaisi’s All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) clinched three of the five seats with the highest women voter turnout—Kochadhaman, Baisi, and Amour—despite not being a frontrunner in the state overall. AIMIM’s total tally stood at five seats, illustrating that women’s electoral participation, while crucial, did not guarantee a win for any single party.
The special intensive revision (SIR) of voter rolls, conducted amid opposition resistance, also played a significant role in shaping the electoral landscape. Four of the five seats with both the highest and lowest deletions of electors during the SIR were won by NDA parties, a pattern roughly proportional to the alliance’s overall dominance—securing about 83% of the assembly seats. The BJP emerged as a strong performer, winning three of the five seats with the highest net deletions (Gopalganj, Purnia, and Motihari), while JDU added Kuchaikote to its tally. Among the seats with the least net deletions, BJP and the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) (LJPRV) each won two, further reinforcing the NDA’s broad reach.
But the story of this election was not just about who won and where. The rise of NOTA votes—where voters reject all candidates—added a new layer of complexity. As NDTV reported on November 19, 2025, NOTA accounted for 1.81% of the total vote share, translating to approximately 9.1 lakh votes. This came even as Bihar recorded its highest-ever voter turnout at 66.91%. While the increase in NOTA share was modest compared to previous years, its impact was outsized in several key constituencies. In 27 seats, NOTA votes actually exceeded the margin of victory, making it a silent but potent expression of voter discontent.
Consider Sandesh, where the JDU scraped through with a margin of just 27 votes, while 4,160 voters chose NOTA—a difference of over 15,000%. Other nail-biting contests included Ramgarh (BSP victory margin of 30 votes vs 1,000+ NOTA votes), Agiaon (BJP won by 95 votes vs 3,600 NOTA votes), and similar patterns in Nabinagar and Dhaka. NOTA’s vote share was nearly equal to AIMIM’s 1.85% and higher than several established parties, including the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Even Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party, which contested 238 seats, finished behind NOTA in 68 constituencies—about 28.6% of the total. As NDTV put it, "This election shows that while NOTA may not decide winners, it is no longer a symbolic option. In dozens of seats, its numbers were higher than the margin of victory, making it a silent but significant player in Bihar's electoral politics."
Meanwhile, the opposition Mahagathbandhan, including the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Congress, and smaller partners, struggled to make inroads despite some high-profile campaigns. The Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), led by Mukesh Sahani and backed by Mahagathbandhan partners, contested 12 seats but failed to win any. Still, as The Week observed on November 20, 2025, Sahani’s visibility soared, thanks in part to Rahul Gandhi’s "vote chori yatra"—a campaign that spotlighted Sahani as a leader of the fishermen community, a group traditionally loyal to the NDA. The VIP emerged as runner-up in nearly every seat it contested, but its overall vote share dipped compared to the previous election. Party spokesperson Dev Jyoti was blunt in his assessment: "There was no issue-based politics that worked on the ground, it was only money that worked in Bihar assembly elections. Even until the day before polling, the NDA doled out cash." He alleged that promises of Rs 1.90 lakh deposits within six months were made to women, and warned, "Now, if these promises are not fulfilled, we will launch a protest, and hit the streets."
The role of cash incentives and freebies in the Bihar elections has been the subject of heated debate. As The Tribune analyzed on November 20, 2025, the culture of offering freebies is hardly new in Indian politics. From free bus rides and utility subsidies in Delhi to household goods in Tamil Nadu, political parties have long used largesse to woo voters. Bihar’s 2025 polls saw a barrage of assurances and cash transfers—most notably, a Rs 10,000 transfer to women supporters, a move widely credited with boosting NDA’s performance among female voters. Yet, the analysis cautioned that such incentives are not a guarantee of victory. Bihar’s economy, while growing rapidly, is still emerging from a low base, and the electorate’s priorities are shaped by a complex mix of economic need, social identity, and political calculation.
Congress, despite winning just six seats, managed notable successes in places like Kishanganj and Chanpatia. Kishanganj, for example, had the fifth highest deletion among the state’s 243 constituencies, yet Congress prevailed. Among the five seats with the highest male voter turnout, Congress secured Manihari, while BJP, JDU, and LJPRV split the rest. High overall turnout was another hallmark of the election—Kasba posted the highest polling percentage at 81.9% (won by LJPRV), with Barari and Thakurganj close behind, both going to JDU. Conversely, BJP dominated in four of the five seats with the lowest turnout, all in Patna or nearby districts.
The interplay between voter turnout, targeted incentives, and the rise of protest voting through NOTA paints a picture of an electorate that is both engaged and restless. While the NDA’s organizational strength and strategic outreach—especially to women—delivered a decisive victory, the underlying currents of discontent and the growing willingness of voters to reject all candidates signal that Bihar’s political landscape remains volatile.
As the dust settles, leaders across the spectrum would do well to heed the lessons of 2025: that no single strategy—be it cash transfers, identity politics, or promises of development—can guarantee electoral dominance in a state as complex and dynamic as Bihar.
