Voting is conducted by secret ballot and no party can issue a whip to its members, meaning individual MPs are free to vote and there is also scope for cross-voting. Any change in the number of expected votes polled at the end of counting on both sides will reveal if there was cross-voting. The number of invalid votes may also reveal deliberate attempt to “waste” votes and benefit the opposite side, after all there is no dearth of disgruntled MPs in all sides
India’s Members of Parliament are currently voting to elect the next Vice President of India and the writing regarding the results is pretty much on the wall. With adequate numbers by its side, the BJP-led NDA is already in a celebration mode. However, the results this evening, in particular the specific number each side polled, may also hold some interesting, hidden revelations/messages about the current political scenario in the country.
Voting is conducted by secret ballot and no party can issue a whip to its members, meaning individual MPs are free to vote and there is also scope for cross-voting. In those terms, the exact number of MPs from different parties who voted today is known.
Electoral College
The Vice-President is elected by an Electoral College comprising all members of both Houses of Parliament—the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.
The 2025 electoral college is composed of 788 members, including 233 elected (presently five seats are vacant in the upper house) and 12 nominated members of the Rajya Sabha, and 543 elected members of the Lok Sabha (one seat vacant in the lower house). Currently there are 782 members in the electoral college due to vacant seats.
Regional parties like Odisha’ BJD and Telengana’ BRS are abstaining therefore it is clear how many MPs from which party would have voted by the end of the polling. Any change in the number of expected votes polled at the end of counting on both sides will reveal if there was some cross-voting. The number of invalid votes may also reveal deliberate attempt to “waste” some votes and benefit the opposite side, after all there is no dearth of disgruntled MPs in all sides
Both INDIA Bloc and NDA have held workshops/ sessions to train MPs on the vote-casting process and boost overs. Even though the ruling BJP-led NDA had the numbers, it left no stone unturned to maximise gains in terms of number of votes polled.
Election process
The election is conducted via a secret ballot using a system of proportional representation with a single transferable vote. While India’s VP elections have generally been smooth, invalid votes due to wrong polling methods (wrong pen, multiple marks, or incorrect signatures) have occurred multiple times, thereby necessitating workshops for MPs before such polls—to avoid mistakes that could reduce their side’s tally.
Therefore all eyes are on the results that may pave way for many decisions on both ends of the political spectrum.
