New Delhi: Women voters outnumbered men in at least 130 assembly constituencies in Bihar. Out of these, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) won 114— almost 88 percent of the constituencies where more women voted than men.
While the NDA wrested a record 202 out of the 243 seats in Bihar, the government’s payment of Rs 10,000 to women under the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana is being considered a major contributing factor for the landslide win.
The assembly polls witnessed the record-breaking participation of women voters—71.6 percent—the highest since 1962, when the men’s and women’s voter turnouts seem to have first been taken into account.
Over 1.41 crore women have received Rs 10,000 each under the scheme since it was launched in late September. The direct cash benefit mirrors similar cash transfers promised to women in other states, including West Bengal, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Delhi. The promise in Bihar, though, is higher. The women, who find good employment with this financial help, have been promised an additional Rs 2 lakh.
Of the 130 such constituencies, the Janata Dal (United) won 48 seats, while 44 went to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Other NDA allies Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) and Rashtriya Lok Morcha got 11, 4 and 2, respectively.
In the Mahagatbandhan camp, the Congress tally stood at 4, the Rashtriya Janata Dal 11 and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) 1. Overall, the Opposition won 16 seats.
Regarding the financial benefit extended to women, poll consultant-turned-politician Prashant Kishor has said that he would quit politics if the Nitish Kumar government delivered its promise of providing Rs 2 lakh each to 1.5 crore beneficiaries.
“What I had said about Nitish Kumar and JD(U)—that they can’t get more than 25 seats—I still stand by it. If Nitish Kumar and his government didn’t buy these votes, (by giving) them Rs 2 lakh each, I will retire from politics altogether,” the Jan Suraaj Party founder has said.
The numbers
The two-phase assembly polls concluded with a voter turnout of 66.91 percent, the highest ever in Bihar since 1951, according to the Election Commission (EC).
The first phase saw a turnout of 69.04 percent of women voters, compared to 61.56 percent of men voters. In the second phase, 74.03 percent of women voters cast ballots, compared to 64.1 percent of men voters.
This is the fourth time that women’s poll participation percentage has surpassed men’s in Bihar. The trend—according to the EC data—began in 2010, when 54.49 percent of eligible women voters cast their ballots, compared to 51.12 percent of the eligible men.
Similarly, 60.48 percent of women voters participated in 2015, compared to 53.32 percent of men voters. In 2020, 59.69 percent of women voters participated, compared to 54.45 percent of men voters.
In absolute numbers as well, 2.51 crore women came out to vote, as compared to 2.47 crore men—outnumbering men by 4.34 lakh votes. In comparison to 2.08 crore women voters in 2020, 2025 elections saw a 43 lakh increase. This increase in votes is also more than the gain in male voter participation—there was an upshoot of 36 lakh votes in 2025, with 2.47 crore men voting in 2025 as compared to 2.11 crore in 2020.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
Also Read: Why Bihar polls saw highest ever women voter turnout