Vice President Election Kicks Off in India: Key Details Inside
Today, September 9, voters are heading to the polls for the Vice President of India election right here in New Delhi. The voting action starts at 10:00 a.m. and wraps up by 5:00 p.m. at the shiny New Parliament Building. It’s a big day for Indian politics, and everyone’s buzzing about who will step into this important role.
The race is heating up between two strong contenders. On one side, you’ve got C.P. Radhakrishnan, the NDA’s pick and current Maharashtra Governor. Facing him is B. Sudershan Reddy, the INDIA bloc’s candidate and a former Supreme Court judge. This Vice President election isn’t just any vote—it’s super crucial because the winner also becomes the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, helping run India’s upper house of Parliament smoothly.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to lead the way by casting the first vote this morning. Keeping things organized, Union Ministers Kiren Rijiju and Ram Mohan Naidu, plus Shiv Sena MP Shrikant Shinde, are serving as the official election agents. Once voting ends, the real excitement begins: vote counting starts at 6:00 p.m., and we could hear the Vice President election results as early as this evening.
So, who’s deciding the winner? The electoral college includes 781 members from Parliament—542 elected Lok Sabha MPs and 239 Rajya Sabha members (that’s 233 elected plus 12 nominated, though there are six vacancies in total). Every vote counts equally in this secret ballot system, following standard parliamentary rules. To clinch the Vice President of India post, a candidate needs at least 391 votes. It’s all about that majority mark!
This election comes after a surprise twist: the Vice President’s seat opened up when Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned on July 21 due to health issues, right at the start of the monsoon session. His sudden exit left a big gap in Rajya Sabha leadership, so today’s Vice President election feels even more urgent.
Experts are calling it a nail-biter, even though the NDA holds a numbers edge in Parliament’s combined strength. Still, watch out for any cross-voting drama—the final outcome could surprise us all. Stay tuned as India watches this key political showdown unfold!
