Women voters of Bihar

The political equations in Bihar are so complex that scientific analysis by political analysts is not an easy task. On one hand, there are caste-based equations, on the other, there is widespread poverty, with a deep divide between rich and poor. Third, there is the functional gap between men and women. This gap is so profound that, in the absence of men who have migrated from Bihar to other states, women are required to handle all the household chores and run the household. However, it is also a fact that women in Bihar are considered more efficient than those in other states. After the second phase of voting in Bihar on November 11th, the results will be announced today on November 14th, revealing the truth of all exit polls. This year, Bihar has seen the highest voter turnout in the last 75 years, and most exit polls predict victory for the ruling NDA. While it’s generally believed that higher voter turnout favors the ruling party, exit polls in Bihar are contradicting this, suggesting that voters have expressed goodwill toward Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s rule.
While it’s true that since 2005, whichever party Nitish Kumar has supported has won, the support of women is also considered a significant factor in his victory. Although the Election Commission didn’t release the male and female voter turnout figures until November 11th, after the first round of voting on November 6th, after the final phase of the second round, on November 11th, it released the voting percentages for male and female voters separately on November 12th, while the total number of female and male voters remains undisclosed. The Election Commission knows why this is happening, but according to the data released, the total voter turnout in both phases was 66.91 percent, with women voters voting 8.8 percent more than men. Women voters in the state have been outnumbering men since 2005, but this gap is believed to be the largest yet. It is believed that women voters’ first choice is Mr. Nitish Kumar, who, after coming to power for the first time in 2005, initiated several important schemes for the development of women. Since then, Nitish Kumar has been the Chief Minister, consistently introducing new schemes for them.
Under the Jeevika Didi scheme already in operation in the state, nearly one crore Jeevika Didis were given ten thousand rupees each before the elections. Its impact on the elections will be known only on November 14th. However, as far as voter turnout is concerned, this time, it was 71.6 percent for women, compared to 62.8 percent for men. Given this difference, it is estimated that in the 2025 elections, women cast five lakh more votes than men. These figures are despite the fact that more women were deleted than men in the special intensive voter revision conducted in the state. Bihar has 3.93 crore male voters and 3.51 crore female voters. Thus, there is a difference of 42.34 lakh votes between male and female voters. Although the Election Commission has not released the total number of male and female voters in these elections, the percentage figure suggests that 2.52 crore female voters and 2.47 crore male voters. As I wrote above, this shows that women voters were more enthusiastic. This enthusiasm was due to the fact that women in Bihar bear a greater burden of responsibility than men. But should this be interpreted as meaning that all women’s votes went to Nitish Kumar? This assessment would be inaccurate, as it is claimed that Bihar’s society is divided along various caste lines. If this is true, it should also impact women voters, as all election analysis in the state is based on caste. It is also true that different castes have their own political parties. If women vote above caste lines, it would be considered a new experiment in Bihar politics, but in reality, this is not the case, as election results have not provided any evidence of this. If we look at historical history, there is evidence that Nitish Kumar has benefited, but there is no evidence that women have voted above caste lines. So far, in 2010, Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) party won the highest number of seats, 115. In these elections, women cast 54.49 percent of the vote, while men cast 51.12 percent. The BJP and JD(U) formed an alliance in these elections. This vote was based on Nitish Kumar’s tenure from 2005 to 2010, during which Lalu Prasad Yadav’s party had to settle for only 22 seats. Following this, in 2015, Nitish Kumar formed an alliance with Lalu Prasad Yadav, in which women cast 60.48 percent of the vote, while men cast 53.32 percent. Lalu Prasad Yadav’s party won the maximum 80 seats, while Nitish Yadav’s party won only 71. Therefore, caste factors also played a role in these elections. It remains to be seen in 2025 to what extent the higher female vote share will help Nitish Kumar.