Indian presidential election, 2017

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Indian presidential election, 2017
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Turnout 99% (estimated) [1] Increase2.svg

  RamNathKovind 2.png Meira Kumar.jpg
Nominee Ram Nath Kovind Meira Kumar
Party BJP INC
Alliance NDA UPA
Home state Uttar Pradesh Bihar
Electoral vote702,044 367,314
Percentage65.65% 34.35%

Indian presidential election, 2017.svg

President before election

Pranab Mukherjee
INC

Elected President

Ram Nath Kovind
BJP

A presidential election was held in India on 17 July 2017 with the votes counted and the results announced on 20 July 2017. Ram Nath Kovind became 14th President of India. President Pranab Mukherjee, whose term of office was due to expire on 24 July 2017, [2] declined to seek re-election due to health concerns.

President of India Ceremonial head of state of India

The President of India is the ceremonial head of state of India and the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces.

Pranab Mukherjee 13th President of India

Pranab Mukherjee is an Indian politician who served as the 13th President of India from 2012 until 2017. He is a Bharat Ratna awardee, awarded in 2019 by President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind. In a political career spanning five decades, Mukherjee has been a senior leader in the Indian National Congress and has occupied several ministerial portfolios in the Government of India. Prior to his election as President, Mukherjee was Union Finance Minister from 2009 to 2012.

Contents

Governor of Bihar Ram Nath Kovind of the Bharatiya Janata Party had the backing of the governing National Democratic Alliance coalition, and went up against opposition candidate Meira Kumar of the Indian National Congress in the vote. Kovind secured roughly two thirds of the votes from the electoral college of elected members of federal, state and union territory legislatures and was elected to a five-year term as President. [3] Kovind's term of office began on 25 July 2017.

Ram Nath Kovind Indian politician, 17th president of India

Ram Nath Kovind is an Indian politician currently serving as the 14th President of India, in office since 25 July 2017. Previously he had served as the Governor of Bihar from 2015 to 2017 and was a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha from 1994 to 2006. Kovind was nominated as a presidential candidate by the ruling NDA coalition and won the 2017 presidential election.

Bharatiya Janata Party Major right-wing political party in India

The Bharatiya Janata Party is one of the two major political parties in India, along with the Indian National Congress. As of 2018, it is the country's largest political party in terms of representation in the national parliament and state assemblies, and it is the world's largest party in terms of primary membership. BJP is a right-wing party, and its policy has historically reflected Hindu nationalist positions. It has close ideological and organisational links to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is a coalition of Progressive centre-right to right-wing political parties in India. At the time of its formation in 1998, it was led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and had 13 constituent parties. Its chairman was late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Also representing the alliance are L. K. Advani, former Deputy Prime Minister, who is the acting chairman of the Alliance, Narendra Modi, current Prime Minister and the Leader of the House in Lok Sabha; and Arun Jaitley, Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha and Finance minister. The coalition ruled from 1998 to 2004. The alliance returned to power in the 2014 General election with a combined vote share of 38.5%. Its leader, Narendra Modi, was sworn in as Prime Minister of India on 26 May 2014.

Background

There was initial speculation that the incumbent, Pranab Mukherjee, would seek re-election. However, he decided not to run again in 2017, meaning that his term in office ended on 24 July 2017. [4]

Selection process

The President of India is indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of the elected members of both houses of parliament, the elected members of the Legislative assemblies of the 29 states and the elected members of the legislative assemblies of the Union Territories of Delhi and Puducherry. [5] As of 2017, the electoral college comprises 777 MPs and 4,120 MLAs. The system assigns varying numbers of votes to these electoral college members, such that the total weight of MPs and those of MLAs is roughly equal and that the voting power of states and territories are proportional to their population. Overall the members of the electoral college were eligible to cast 1,098,903 votes, yielding a threshold for a majority of 549,452 votes. [6]

An indirect election is an election in which voters do not choose between candidates for an office, but elect people who then choose. It is one of the oldest forms of elections, and is still used today for many presidents, cabinets, upper houses, and supranational legislatures. Presidents and prime ministers can be indirectly elected by parliaments or by a special body convened solely for that purpose. The election of the executive government in most parliamentary systems is indirect: elect the parliamentarians, who then elect the government including most prominently the prime minister from among themselves. Upper houses, especially of federal republics, can be indirectly elected by state legislatures or state governments. Similarly, supranational legislatures can be indirectly elected by constituent countries' legislatures or executive governments.

The President is indirectly elected by means of an electoral college consisting of the elected members of the Parliament of India and the Legislative assemblies of the States and the Union Territories of Delhi and Pondicherry. The number and value of votes are based on the population in 1971 rather than the current population, as a result of the 42nd Amendment, and extended by the 84th Amendment, with the intention to encourage family planning programs in the states by ensuring that states are not penalized for lowering their population growth.

Parliament of India National bicameral legislature

The Parliament of India is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the President of India and the two houses: the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. The President in his role as head of legislature has full powers to summon and prorogue either house of Parliament or to dissolve Lok Sabha. The president can exercise these powers only upon the advice of the Prime Minister and his Union Council of Ministers.

The nomination of a candidate for election to the office of the President must be subscribed by at least 50 electors as proposers and 50 electors as seconders. The election is held by means of a secret ballot under the single transferable vote system. The manner of election of President is provided by Article 55 of the Constitution. [7] [8]

Secret ballot voting style that makes each vote anonymous

The secret ballot, also known as Australian ballot, is a voting method in which a voter's choices in an election or a referendum are anonymous, forestalling attempts to influence the voter by intimidation, blackmailing, and potential vote buying. The system is one means of achieving the goal of political privacy.

The single transferable vote (STV) is a voting system designed to achieve proportional representation through ranked voting in multi-seat organizations or constituencies. Under STV, an elector (voter) has a single vote that is initially allocated to their most preferred candidate. Votes are totalled and a quota derived. If their candidate achieves quota, he/she is elected and in some STV systems any surplus vote is transferred to other candidates in proportion to the voters' stated preferences. If more candidates than seats remain, the bottom candidate is eliminated with his/her votes being transferred to other candidates as determined by the voters' stated preferences. These elections and eliminations, and vote transfers if applicable, continue until there are only as many candidates as there are unfilled seats. The specific method of transferring votes varies in different systems.

Constitution of India Supreme law of India

The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India. The document lays down the framework demarcating fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental rights, directive principles, and the duties of citizens. It is the longest written constitution of any country on earth. B. R. Ambedkar, chairman of the drafting committee, is widely considered to be its chief architect.

The returning officer for the election was Anoop Mishra, the Secretary General of Lok Sabha. [9]

Electoral college partisan composition

At the time of the election the NDA coalition itself was short of a majority by about 25,000 votes, but was expected to be able to rely on other parties to breach the small deficit without difficulty. [6]

Party/Alliance Party composition Lok Sabha votes Rajya Sabha votes State Assemblies votes Total votes Percentage
NDA BJP, SHS, TDP, LJSP, SAD, RLSP, AD, GFP, MGP, [10] AINRC, JKPDP, NPF, NPP, PMK, SDF, SWP 237,888 49,560 239,923 527,371 48.10%
Other parties AIADMK, [11] YSRCP, JD(U), BJD, [12] TRS, [13] INLD, IND 50,268 20,532 63,107 133,907 12.20%
Government total (including non-NDA parties' support) 661,27860.30%
UPA INC, IUML, RSP, KC (M), DMK 34,692 46,020 93,137 173,849 15.90%
Other parties AITC, CPI(M), NCP, SP, BSP, AAP, RJD, AIUDF, JD(S), JMM, AIMIM, CPI, JKNC 60,180 47,436 152,776 260,392 23.80%
Opposition total434,24139.70%

Public opinion

Although the election was not a popular vote, some general polling was performed to measure public opinion. In both Business Insider -Ipsos and NDTV polls comparing support of the two candidates, Kovind was the more popular choice with 71% [14] and 63% [15] support respectively.

Candidates

Two candidates were nominated. Both the governing NDA coalition and the opposition UPA coalition put forward candidates from their dominant parties, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Indian National Congress respectively.

Bharatiya Janata Party

Name Born Current or previous positions State AnnouncedRef
RamNathKovind 2.png
Ram Nath Kovind 		1 October 1945 (age 72)
Kanpur Dehat, Uttar Pradesh 		35th Governor of Bihar (2015–2017)

Member of the Rajya Sabha from Uttar Pradesh (1994–2006)

 Seal of Uttar Pradesh.svg

Uttar Pradesh

19 June 2017 [16] [17] [18]

Indian National Congress

Name Born Current or previous positions State AnnouncedRef
Meira Kumar.jpg
Meira Kumar 		31 March 1945 (age 73)
Patna, Bihar 		15th Speaker of the Lok Sabha (2009–2014)
Union Minister of Water Resources (2009)
Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment (2004-2009)
Member of the Indian Parliament for Sasaram (2004–2014)
Member of the Indian Parliament for Karol Bagh (1996-1999)
Member of the Indian Parliament for Bijnor (1985-1989)		 Seal of Bihar.svg
Bihar 		22 June 2017 [19] [20] [21]

Results

Ram Nath Kovind was declared the winner after the counting of votes which was held on 20 July 2017. [22] He was administered oath by the Chief Justice of India Jagdish Singh Khehar, to take office as the 14th President of India on 25 July 2017 at the Central Hall located in The Parliament House, New Delhi. [23]

Results of the 2017 Indian presidential election [24]
Candidate Individual votes Electoral College votes %
Ram Nath Kovind 2,930 702,044
65.65%
Meira Kumar 1,844 367,314
34.35%
Invalid [25] 77 20,942

Reactions

Immediately after the results were announced, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, "Congratulations to Shri Ram Nath Kovind Ji on being elected the President of India! Best wishes for a fruitful & inspiring tenure". In another tweet he added "Gladdened by the extensive support for Shri Ram Nath Kovind Ji among MPs & across various parties. I thank members of the electoral college". [22]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Prabhu, Sunil; Varma, Shylaja. "Presidential Election Sees Nearly 99% Voting, Ram Nath Kovind Set For Easy Win: 10 Points". NDTV. Retrieved 17 July 2017.
  2. ↑ "Election Commission issues notification for President's election". The Hindu. 14 June 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  3. ↑ Hebbar, Nistula (21 July 2017). "Ram Nath Kovind is the 14th President of India". The Hindu. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  4. ↑ "Not in race for another term: President Mukherjee". The News Minute. 25 May 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  5. ↑ "Election of The President". Press Information Bureau . Retrieved 28 April 2016.
  6. 1 2 Phukan, Sandeep (13 March 2017). "How BJP's UP Win Will Impact Presidential Election. Numbers Explained". NDTV. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  7. ↑ Pratiyogita Darpan. Upkar Prakashan. p. 167. ISBN   9788174828156 . Retrieved 28 April 2016.
  8. ↑ "Election to the Office of President of India: Frequently Asked Questions" (PDF). eci.nic.in. Election Commission of India. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  9. ↑ Mishra, Anoop (14 June 2017). "Public Notice issued by Returning Officer for Election to the Office of President of India" . Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  10. ↑ "Goa Forward joins NDA". The Goan EveryDay. The Goan. 11 April 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  11. ↑ Vaidyanathan, A (17 June 2017). "For Presidential Election, Tamil Nadu's Ruling AIADMK Allies With BJP". NDTV. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  12. ↑ "BJD supports NDA candidate Ram Nath Kovind in Presidential polls". The Indian Express. 19 June 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  13. ↑ "Telangana CM K.C. Rao extends support to NDA's Presidential candidate | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis". DNA India. Diligent Media Corporation. 19 June 2017. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
  14. ↑ Tanya Dubey (18 July 2017). "71% Indians want Ram Nath Kovind to be the next president, according to this Ipsos Poll". Business Insider . Retrieved 18 July 2017.
  15. ↑ Abhishek Chakraborty (17 July 2017). "Presidential Election 2017 Highlights: Ram Nath Kovind vs Meira Kumar; Voting Ends". NDTV. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
  16. ↑ "President's post above politics, says Kovind". The Hindu. Retrieved 2017-08-27.
  17. ↑ "Raj Bhavan for man who shunned TV". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-08-27.
  18. ↑ "Prez polls: BJP picks Bihar governor Ram Nath Kovind". OnManorama. Retrieved 2017-08-27.
  19. ↑ Manoj C G; Ghosh, Abanitka; Mishra, Anand (23 June 2017). "Presidential Polls: Meira Kumar will challenge Ram Nath Kovind, BSP and SP go with Opposition choice". The Indian Express. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  20. ↑ "Meira Kumar is Oppn's pick to fight Kovind in presidential election". Hindustan Times. 27 June 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
  21. ↑ "India opposition nominates Meira Kumar as presidential candidate". The Daily Star . 22 June 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
  22. 1 2 "With 65% votes, Ram Nath Kovind is the next President of India". Rediff News. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  23. ↑ Agarwal, Nikhil (20 July 2017). "Ram Nath Kovind elected Indias 14th President, to take oath on July 25". India Today. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  24. ↑ "Live: Ram Nath Kovind is 14th President of India, to take oath on July 25". Hindustan Times . 20 July 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  25. ↑ "Ram Nath Kovind elected as the 14th President of India". The News Minute. 20 July 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
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