Elections: Class 9 Social Science · Chapter 7

Suppose the residents of your colony chose a secretary for their association two years ago, for a two-year term. The term is over, but the secretary says a new vote would waste everyone's time, since people seem happy with her work. Many residents may even agree. Still, something is not right. Who decided that people are happy? And if residents change their minds later, how would they replace her?

Democracies have one answer to puzzles like this: regular elections. In this chapter we ask why elections matter, how votes are turned into seats, which laws and institutions run elections in India, what political parties do, and what can still go wrong.

7.1 Why do Elections Matter?

In a democracy the people are the final authority. But crores of people cannot gather in one hall to debate every law. So they choose representatives to decide on their behalf, and the method of choosing them is an election (चुनाव). Taking part is both a right and a responsibility: your vote helps decide who runs your panchayat or ward, your State and the country.

An office can be filled by election in two ways. In a direct election, citizens themselves vote for the person who will hold the post. In an indirect election, citizens elect representatives, and those representatives then elect the office-holder (Fig. 7.1).

Not every vote makes a democracy, though. An election is democratic only when it passes three tests:

• It is regular. It is held at fixed intervals, so no government can stay in power indefinitely without asking the people again.
• It offers a real choice. More than one candidate and party can compete freely. A poll in which only one party is permitted is not a choice.
• It is free and fair. People vote without fear or bribes, and every vote is counted honestly.

Think of each election as a contract with an expiry date. Voters hand power to their representatives for a fixed term, usually five years. When the term ends, the contract must be renewed by a fresh vote, and voters are free to refuse. That is why elected representatives are accountable: they must explain their work and face the people again. Each vote you cast is part of that renewal decision, as Fig. 7.2 shows.

Elections do several jobs for a democracy at once:

• Representation: people with different needs and views get a voice in law-making.
• Accountability: those in power must answer to voters, who can remove them.
• Legitimacy: a government chosen by the people has a right to rule that citizens accept, even those who voted against it.
• Equality: every adult citizen has one vote, and every vote counts the same.

7.2 Inside India's Election Machinery

A school election needs a ballot box and a teacher to count the votes. An election for crores of voters, spread across snowy passes, deserts, islands and crowded cities, is one of the largest organising tasks in the world. It needs three things: clear rules, institutions strong enough to apply them, and people who play by them.

Many players share the work. The Election Commission of India (ECI) organises and supervises the polls. Political parties and independent candidates compete. The media report, citizens' groups (civil society) keep watch, and voters make the final decision. Who may do what is written down in the Constitution and in Acts of Parliament, which we meet in Section 7.2.2.

7.2.1 The Electoral System

Votes do not turn into seats by themselves. A country needs a rule that says, for example, whether the candidate with the most votes simply wins, or whether seats are shared out among parties. That rule is its electoral system (निर्वाचन प्रणाली), and it matters more than you might expect: the same votes can produce very different legislatures under different rules.

India uses two such rules. Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha members are chosen by the plurality rule, usually called first-past-the-post (FPTP). The Rajya Sabha, the President, the Vice President and the Vidhan Parishads are chosen by proportional representation through a single transferable vote. The Constituent Assembly debated the main options before settling on this mix.

FPTP takes its name from horse racing: whoever passes the winning post first wins, however narrow the lead. The country is divided into constituencies (निर्वाचन क्षेत्र), and each one elects a single member. Every voter marks one candidate, and whoever gets the most votes takes the seat. The winner does not need a majority: 35 per cent can be enough if the other votes are split among several rivals.

Two other systems are common elsewhere. In a two-round (majority) system, a winner needs more than half the votes; if nobody gets that in the first round, the top two meet again in a second round. France elects its President this way. Under proportional representation (PR), voters usually choose a party, and each party gets seats in proportion to its share of the votes. The Netherlands and South Africa elect their national parliaments in this way.

To see why the choice matters, imagine the island State of Sagarpur. Its assembly has five seats, one per constituency, and three parties contest: Teal (T), Amber (A) and Violet (V). Each constituency has 10,000 voters, so 1 per cent is 100 votes. Fig. 7.3 counts the same votes in two ways.

Under FPTP, Teal wins three close contests and takes 60 per cent of the seats with a third of the votes. Amber, the most popular party overall, piles up a huge win in C4 but takes only one seat. Under PR, the seats closely follow the votes. Neither result is simply ‘wrong’: each system values something different, as the comparison below shows.

Why did India's framers pick FPTP for the Lok Sabha? The reasons usually given are that it is easy to understand, even for someone voting for the first time; that every area has its own representative to approach; and that it often gives one party or alliance enough seats to form a stable government. Critics point to the gap between votes and seats that you saw in Sagarpur. Supporters reply that stability and a clear local representative are worth that cost.

Most States make do with a single House, the Vidhan Sabha, whose members are picked by FPTP just like Lok Sabha MPs. Delhi, Puducherry, and Jammu and Kashmir, though Union Territories, have elected assemblies too. Six States have added an upper House, the Vidhan Parishad (Legislative Council), so their legislatures are bicameral (two-House). In alphabetical order they are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh.

Every elected seat in that table is filled by proportional representation with a single transferable vote, the method we turn to next.

The single transferable vote (STV) is used when a group of electors must fill several seats, such as a State's MLAs electing its Rajya Sabha members, or a single high office. Instead of marking one name, each elector ranks the candidates: 1 for the first choice, 2 for the next, and so on. To win, a candidate must reach a fixed number of votes called the quota.

1. Count the first preference on every ballot. Anyone who reaches the quota is elected.
2. A winner's votes above the quota, the surplus, pass to the next preferences marked on those ballots.
3. If seats are still empty, the candidate with the fewest votes drops out, and those ballots pass to their next preferences.
4. Repeat until every seat is filled.

Real counts share out a surplus more precisely than this, using fractions of votes, but the idea is the same. The quota is set just high enough that no more candidates can reach it than there are seats to fill.

7.2.2 The Laws

The Constitution sets the big principles, such as every adult citizen's right to vote. The details come from laws made by Parliament. Two laws form the backbone of Indian elections. The first is the Representation of the People Act of 1950 (RPA 1950); the second, passed a year later, is the Representation of the People Act of 1951 (RPA 1951). A third law, the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act of 1952, covers the country's two highest offices.

A simple way to remember them: RPA 1950 settles who votes, and where; RPA 1951 settles how the contest is run and judged. The voting age, by the way, was 21 until the 61st Amendment to the Constitution, passed in 1988, lowered it to 18.

RPA 1951 also lists corrupt practices. If a court finds that a winner used one, it can cancel the election, and the person can be barred from contesting for some years. Corrupt practices include:

• Bribery: paying or promising anything of value, such as cash, a gift or a job, in return for a vote, for staying away from the booth, or for entering or leaving the race.
• Undue influence: threatening voters or candidates, for example with harm or a social boycott.
• Appeals to identity: urging people to back or reject a candidate because of their religion, caste, race, community or language.
• False statements: publishing lies about a rival candidate's personal character to hurt their chances.
• Using government staff: getting help for a campaign from government servants such as police officers, magistrates or members of the armed forces.

Anyone who believes an election was won unlawfully can file an election petition in the High Court, usually within 45 days of the result.

7.2.3 Delimitation Commission

Imagine two neighbouring Lok Sabha constituencies: Hillpur with 12 lakh people and Riverganj with 30 lakh. Each elects one MP. A voter in Hillpur shares an MP with 12 lakh people; a voter in Riverganj shares one with 30 lakh. In effect, a Hillpur vote weighs 30 ÷ 12 = 2.5 times as much. That breaks the rule of one person, one vote, one value.

Populations keep changing. Towns grow into cities, and people move for work. So the lines must be redrawn from time to time. Delimitation (परिसीमन) is the job of deciding how many Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha seats each State has and where each constituency's boundary runs (Fig. 7.6).

Article 82 of the Constitution requires the Lok Sabha seats to be readjusted after each census, and Article 170 does the same for the Vidhan Sabhas. The work is done by a Delimitation Commission, set up under a law passed by Parliament. India has had four, in 1952, 1963, 1973 and 2002. The Commission is headed by a serving or retired Supreme Court judge, and its orders have the force of law. It also decides which constituencies are reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, based on their share of the population.

7.3 Election Commission of India (ECI)

Article 324 of the Constitution gives the Election Commission of India (भारत निर्वाचन आयोग) the ‘superintendence, direction and control’ of elections. In plain words, the ECI is in charge of the whole process, from preparing the list of voters to declaring the results.

Notice what is missing from that list: panchayats and municipalities. Their elections are run by a separate State Election Commission in each State, set up under the 73rd and 74th Amendments of 1992.

The ECI's own office in New Delhi is small. At election time it relies on lakhs of government employees, who work under its control for election duties. For every State, the ECI picks a senior civil servant as its Chief Electoral Officer, after consulting the State government; this officer oversees all election work in the State. In each district the District Election Officer, usually the District Magistrate or Collector, is in charge (Fig. 7.7).

Each constituency has a Returning Officer, who receives nominations, conducts the poll and declares the result, and an Electoral Registration Officer, who prepares its voters' list. At every polling station a Presiding Officer leads the polling team, and a Booth Level Officer helps keep the local list up to date.

Let us now look at the main jobs the ECI does. You met some of them in Class 8; here we look at each more closely.

7.3.1 Preparing the electoral roll

No name on the list, no vote. The electoral roll (मतदाता सूची) is the official list of voters. Each constituency has its own roll, divided booth by booth, so that every polling station gets the part listing the people who vote there. On polling day the polling team checks your name against this list. If your name is missing, you cannot vote, even if you carry a voter ID card.

To be on the roll, a person must be a citizen of India, at least 18 years old on the qualifying date, and ordinarily resident in that constituency. Officials, usually Booth Level Officers, visit homes to collect details of eligible people. The roll is updated every year through a summary revision, when people can apply to add, correct or remove names.

From time to time the ECI orders a deeper clean-up called a Special Intensive Revision (SIR). Instead of simply adding to last year's list, officials knock on every door and re-check each entry. Think of a teacher cleaning up the class register at the start of a year: newcomers are added, and those who have left are struck off. An SIR works in both directions too:

Because a revision can add or remove many names, it follows set steps. Anyone who is left out, or wrongly removed, can file a claim, and can appeal against the decision to higher election officers.

7.3.2 Fixing the election schedule

Try planning one polling day for the whole of India. In April, wheat is being harvested across the north. In July, monsoon floods can cut off villages in the east and north-east. In February and March, board exams fill the school buildings that also serve as polling stations, and in autumn big festivals keep crores of people on the move. Add the need to move lakhs of security personnel from place to place, and a single day becomes impossible.

An election falls due when a five-year term ends, or sooner if a House is dissolved early. The ECI then spreads a large election over several phases, with different regions voting on different days. The 2024 Lok Sabha election was held in seven phases between 19 April and 1 June, and all the votes were counted on 4 June (ECI schedule, announced on 16 March 2024).

Fig. 7.8 shows the main stages. From the moment the schedule is announced until the results are declared, the Model Code of Conduct (आदर्श आचार संहिता) applies. It is a set of guidelines, accepted by the parties, on how parties, candidates and governments must behave during an election. For example, a government may not announce new schemes while the code is in force, ministers may not mix official tours with campaigning, and places of worship may not be used for election propaganda. Campaigning must stop 48 hours before polling ends.

7.3.3 Registering parties and allotting symbols

Look at a ballot unit and you will see a small picture beside every name. For a voter who cannot read, that symbol is the name; for everyone else, it is a quick way to find a choice. Who decides which symbol goes to whom? The ECI.

Parties first register with the ECI. On the basis of their election results, it then classes them as recognised national parties, recognised State parties, or registered unrecognised parties (Section 7.4.3). A recognised party gets a reserved symbol that no one else may use: across India for a national party, within its State for a State party. Candidates of other parties, and independents who belong to no party, choose from a list of free symbols based on everyday objects.

When a party splits and rival groups both claim its name and symbol, the ECI listens to both sides and rules on the dispute, acting rather like a court; this is its quasi-judicial role. The ECI also nudges parties towards inner-party democracy, by expecting them to elect their own office-bearers at regular intervals.

7.3.4 Ensuring free and fair elections

Holding a vote is not the same as holding a fair vote. Three words sum up what a good election needs. It must be free: a landlord who tells farm workers how to vote breaks this. It must be fair, with the same rules for everyone and an honest count: a voters' list that skips an entire slum breaks this. And it must be inclusive, so that every eligible person can actually vote: a booth up a flight of stairs, with no ramp, breaks this. If any one is missing, the result may not show what the people really wanted.

‘No voter to be left behind’ is the ECI's motto for inclusion. Some of the steps it takes:

• Accessible booths: ramps, wheelchairs, volunteers, drinking water and shade at polling stations, and transport for voters who need it.
• Braille numbers beside the buttons on the EVM's ballot unit, so that visually impaired voters can vote on their own.
• Voting from home: voters above 85, and persons with a disability assessed at 40 per cent or more, can apply to vote from home by postal ballot. The 2024 Lok Sabha election was the first general election to offer this across India.
• A third gender category on the roll, so that transgender persons can enrol with their own identity.
• Special enrolment drives among Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs), many of whom live in remote forest and hill areas.
• Postal ballots for service voters, for staff and police on election duty, and for people held in preventive detention. People confined in prison, whether convicted or awaiting trial, cannot vote.

All of this happens on a vast scale. About 96.8 crore people were registered as electors for the 2024 Lok Sabha election, and they voted at about 10.5 lakh polling stations (ECI, March 2024). India's first general election, in 1951–52, had about 17.3 crore electors. Paper registers alone could never keep up with numbers like these, so much of the ECI's work now runs through apps and online portals, with tools for each group of users:

These tools are now being brought together: in 2025 the ECI announced ECINET, a single platform meant to replace its forty-odd separate apps.

7.4 Political Parties

A political party (राजनीतिक दल) is an organised group of people who share broad ideas about how the country should be run and who contest elections to put those ideas into practice. Think of a party as a team with a playbook: the playbook is its programme, and the players are the candidates it fields. Now imagine a ballot with twenty strangers and no teams: you would have to research every name from scratch. Party labels save voters that work, which is one reason most candidates contest on a party ticket, while a few stand as independents.

Parties do jobs that a large democracy cannot do without:

• They put up candidates and a manifesto, a written list of promises and plans, so that voters have real alternatives.
• They help voters decide: a party's record and promises tell voters what its candidate is likely to do.
• They pull opinions together: millions of separate views become a few clear programmes that can be compared.
• They keep issues alive: rallies, debates and advertisements push problems such as jobs, prices or water onto the public agenda.
• After the count, they form the government or the opposition (Fig. 7.9).

7.4.1 A multi-party system

In some countries, such as the United States, two big parties take turns in power. India is different: many parties contest, and more than two have a real chance of winning power, alone or with partners. This is a multi-party system. A country with so many languages, regions, faiths and communities produces many groups with their own priorities, and no one or two parties could speak for all of them.

When no party wins a majority on its own, parties join hands. An alliance may be formed before or after an election, and when allies share power, the government is a coalition. The timeline below shows how India moved from the dominance of one party to an era of alliances.

7.4.2 Defection and the anti-defection law

Picture an MLA who wins her seat as Party P's candidate. A year later she announces that she is joining Party Q, or she votes against Party P's line on an important bill. Voters who chose P now find their seat counted on the other side. Such switching by an elected member is called defection (दल-बदल). Ordinary party members, who hold no seat, can change parties freely; the concern is about people elected on a party's ticket.

To check frequent switching, Parliament passed the anti-defection law in 1985 through the 52nd Amendment to the Constitution, which added the Tenth Schedule. An MP or MLA can be disqualified for voluntarily giving up membership of their party, or for voting, or staying away from a vote, against the party's direction, called the whip, without its permission. An independent member who joins a party after the election can be disqualified too. The Speaker of the House decides such cases; in the Rajya Sabha or a Vidhan Parishad, the Chairman decides. One exception remains: if at least two-thirds of a party's members in the House agree to merge with another party, they keep their seats.

Supporters of the law say it has brought stability to governments. Critics say it makes legislators afraid to disagree with their party's leaders, even on matters of conscience. Both views are part of an ongoing debate.

7.4.3 Recognising national and State parties

Registration is open to any party that meets the ECI's basic rules, but recognition has to be earned at the polls. It brings real advantages: a reserved symbol, free broadcast time on public television and radio during campaigns, and more star campaigners. The ECI checks a party's results at the last general election against the conditions in Table 7.5. Meeting any one condition is enough.

A party that is registered but meets none of these conditions, or has not contested at all since registering, is a registered unrecognised party.

After its review in April 2023, the ECI recognised six national parties, and the number was still six in 2025. In alphabetical order they are the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Communist Party of India (Marxist), or CPI(M), the Indian National Congress (INC) and the National People's Party (NPP).

7.5 Challenges to Free and Fair Elections

Every big election is a stress test. Some problems are as old as elections themselves, such as bribes and threats; others, such as deepfake videos, are new. The main ones are:

• Money power: cash, gifts or liquor handed out for votes, and spending far beyond legal limits.
• Muscle power and intimidation: threats or violence that keep some people away from the booth or force their choice.
• Misinformation and fake news: false claims, including doctored photos and videos called deepfakes, spreading fast on social media.
• Divisive appeals: asking for votes in the name of religion or caste, which the law forbids.
• Misuse of official power: using government vehicles, staff or advertisements for a party's campaign.
• Low turnout: many registered voters, especially in some big cities, do not vote at all.

The law and the ECI answer each problem with safeguards (Fig. 7.10). Candidates must stay within spending limits, now up to ₹95 lakh for a Lok Sabha seat in larger States and ₹75 lakh in smaller ones (ECI, 2022). Flying squads and expenditure observers watch for cash and gifts. Central armed police forces and live webcasting from sensitive polling stations discourage threats. Citizens can report a breach of the Model Code within minutes through the cVIGIL app, and the ECI runs voter awareness campaigns under its SVEEP programme (Systematic Voters' Education and Electoral Participation).

Votes are cast on electronic voting machines (EVMs). Since the 2019 Lok Sabha election, every EVM has been paired with a Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) unit. When you press a button, a paper slip with your candidate's serial number, name and symbol appears behind a window for about seven seconds, then drops into a sealed box. At counting, the slips from five randomly chosen polling stations in each Assembly constituency, or Assembly segment of a Lok Sabha seat, are counted by hand and matched with the EVM totals. Doubts about EVMs have been taken to court from time to time; in April 2024 the Supreme Court rejected pleas to return to paper ballots.

Voters who do not want to support any candidate can press NOTA (‘None of the Above’), available since 2013. NOTA votes are counted and published, but they do not change the result: the candidate with the most votes still wins.

Rules and machines can only do so much. The rest depends on ordinary voters: checking that their names are on the roll, turning up on polling day, turning down bribes and reporting what they see.