PM Modi casts first vote as Vice Presidential election begins
What's the story
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the first voter in the 2025 Vice Presidential election, casting his ballot at the new Parliament building. He was accompanied by Union Ministers Kiren Rijiju and Ram Mohan Naidu. The election is to fill the post left vacant after Jagdeep Dhankhar's sudden resignation. The contest is between Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) candidate, Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan, and the opposition INDIA bloc's candidate, former Supreme Court judge B Sudershan Reddy.
Voting timeline
Voting, counting of votes, and results
Voting for the Vice Presidential election started at 10:00am and will continue till 5:00pm, with counting of votes to begin at 6:00pm. The results are expected later in the evening. The electoral college consists of 781 MPs, of whom 238 are from the Rajya Sabha and 542 are from the Lok Sabha. However, three regional parties have decided to abstain from voting, reducing the majority mark needed for victory.
Candidate profiles
Candidates for vice presidential election
Radhakrishnan is a veteran BJP leader with over four decades in public life. He served as the Governor of Jharkhand before serbing as the Governor of Maharashtra. On the other hand, Reddy started his legal career in 1971 and retired from the Supreme Court in 2011, serving at the apex court for approximately four years.
Political framing
SP MP frames election as battle over Constitution
Samajwadi Party MP Awadhesh Prasad framed the election as a battle over protecting the Constitution and the legacy of BR Ambedkar. On the other hand, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi criticized the opposition's candidate, adding that internal dissent in Congress would strengthen the NDA's chances. Despite having a numerical edge with support from YSR Congress Party's 11 lawmakers, NDA is wary of possible defections that could narrow their victory margin.
Pre-election activities
NDA confident of victory
Before the election commenced, NDA's candidate Radhakrishnan was seen offering prayers at Shree Ram Mandir in Delhi. BJP MP Pradeep Kumar Singh expressed confidence in the alliance's chances, saying they are "110% confident of victory today." Meanwhile, Yadav said the vice presidential election would be decided by lawmakers voting with their conscience, not just by numbers.