Election officials and security personnel disembark from a ferry as they depart for polling duty on the eve of the first phase of the Bihar Assembly elections in Patna on November 5, 2025. | Photo credit: PTI
More than 3.75 crore voters in Bihar will cast their votes in the first phase of the Assembly elections on Thursday (November 6, 2025), covering 121 of the state’s 243 constituencies. This phase is particularly significant for the opposition Mahagatbandhan, which secured 63 of these seats in the 2020 elections. The ruling BJP and Janata Dal (United) have won 55 together.
The first phase contests are also crucial for smaller parties in both coalitions. At this stage, ten of the 20 seats where the CPI(ML) has fielded a candidate will go to polls, out of which the party has six seats. The CPI (ML) had one of the best strikes in the 2020 elections and will need to retain these seats to maintain its record.
Also Read: Bihar Election 2025 Phase 1 Voting LIVE
In the ruling NDA, 10 of the 29 seats contested by the Lok Janshakti Party (Ramvilas) are in the first phase. The NDA currently holds only one of these ten seats. The LJP’s (RV) seat share sparked discontent among NDA allies, especially the Janata Dal (United), which argued that the party’s split was disproportionate given its under-representation in the Assembly.
This phase will also reveal whether the Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP) is able to pull its own weight in the opposition alliance. The electoral fate of six of the 15 mandates contested will be decided on Thursday (November 6, 2025). The Mahagatbandhan named VIP President Mukesh Sahani as its deputy chief ministerial candidate.
Top leaders, celebrities in battle
Several top leaders are at loggerheads at this stage, including opposition chief minister Tejashwi Yadav and more than a dozen BJP and JD(U) ministers in the Nitish Kumar government, including deputy chief ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha. Mr. Choudhary has been running for direct election for about ten years from Tarapur. Former Bihar BJP chief and state minister Mangal Pandey is also contesting his first assembly election from Siwan.
This phase will also test the electoral appeal of celebrities. Young folk singer Maithili Thakur (BJP-Aliganj) and Bhojpuri superstars Khesari Lal Yadav (RJD-Chhapra) and Ritesh Pandey (Jan Suraaj Party – Kargahar) are competing in the first phase.
Places to watch
While the RJD succession battle has long been settled in Mr Tejashwi Yadav’s favour, this phase will also decide whether his estranged elder brother Tej Pratap Yadav, who floated his own outfit, the Janshakti Janata Dal, will be able to mount a challenge. He is running from the Mahua Assembly seat.
Two other places that are being watched closely are Mokama and Raghunathpur. In Mokama, JD(U)’s Anant Singh, recently arrested in connection with the murder of party supporter Jan Suraj, is pitted against RJD’s Veena Devi, Suraj Bhan’s wife, who is also facing multiple criminal charges.
In Raghunathpur, Osama Shahab, the 31-year-old son of the late gangster-turned-politician Mohd Shahabuddin, is contesting on an RJD ticket.
Voting will take place in 45,341 polling stations, the vast majority of which (36,733) are located in rural areas. According to the Election Commission, out of 3.75 million voters in 121 constituencies, 10.72 million were “new voters”. However, the number of voters in the 18-19 age group was 7.38 million.
Published – 05 Nov 2025 21:50 IST
