What is the majority mark for forming a government in the state? Check

By FnF Correspondent | PUBLISHED: 14, Nov 2025, 12:31 pm IST | UPDATED: 14, Nov 2025, 12:31 pm IST

The counting of votes for the Assembly elections in Bihar is taking place today (November 14). Counting of votes for bypolls in Rajasthan, Punjab, Telangana, Jharkhand, Mizoram, Odisha, and Jammu and Kashmir is being held simultaneously with Bihar. The Assembly elections in Bihar were held in two phases on November 6 and November 11. There are 243 Assembly seats in Bihar. 38 seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes (SCs), and only two seats are reserved for Scheduled Tribes (STs) in the state Assembly. The term of the present Bihar Assembly is from November 23, 2020, to November 11, 2025. There are 7,43,55,976 voters in Bihar.

Every party or any coalition must reach the majority mark in the Legislative Assembly to form the government in the state. The majority mark in each state assembly depends upon the total number of seats in the legislative assembly of a particular state. The majority mark in any state is half of the number of total Assembly seats plus one more seat. The Bihar Assembly has 243 seats, and the majority mark is 122.

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Janata Dal United (JDU), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Indian National Congress (INC) are the main parties in Bihar. Chirag Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) of Mukesh Sahani, the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) of Jitan Ram Manjhi and Left parties are other important parties in the state.

Bihar Chief Minister since 2005, barring a short period from May 2014 to February 2015, when Jitan Ram Manjhi was the Chief Minister. In the 2020 Bihar Assembly Election, the RJD became the single largest party with 75 seats, and the BJP won 74 seats, while the JDU could secure just 43 seats. However, the BJP, along with VIP and HAM, supported Nitish Kumar as the Chief Minister once again.

Key candidates in Bihar

Former Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav (RJD), Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary (BJP), Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha (BJP), Vijay Kumar Chaudhary (JDU), Ram Kripal Yadav (BJP), Tarkishore Prasad (BJP), Umesh Singh Kushwaha (JDU), Uday Narain Choudhary (RJD), Snehlata Kushwaha (RLM), Raju Tiwari (LJP-RV), Deepa Manjhi (HAM), Shyam Rajak (JDU), Nitin Nabin (BJP), Anant Kumar Singh (JDU), Rajesh Ram (Congress), Shakeel Ahmad Khan (Congress), Ramanuj Prasad Yadav (RJD) and Maheshwar Hazari (JDU) are some of the key candidates in Bihar.

Key constituencies in Bihar

Raghopur, Tarapur, Mahua, Lakhisarai, Bettiah, Mokama, Kutumba, Gaya Town, Sasaram, Govindganj, Danapur, Chapra, Sarairanjan, Imamganj, Begusarai, Jamui, Madhubani, Amour and Phulwari are some of the key Assembly constituencies in Bihar.

Polling percentage in 2025

According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), Bihar saw a record turnout this time, with 66.90% of voters using their franchise. The voter turnout in the Bihar Assembly elections witnessed an encouraging rise, with 65.08% of voters casting their ballots in the first phase, followed by around 68.79% turnout in the second phase.

Polling percentage in 2020

Bihar registered 57.29 per cent of voting in the Assembly Election 2020. It was 56.91 per cent in 2015.

What happened in the 2020 and 2015 Assembly Elections in Bihar?

In the 2020 Bihar Assembly Election, the RJD emerged as the single largest party with 75 seats and received 23.11% of votes. The BJP won 74 seats with 19.46% of votes. The JDU was reduced to 43 seats with 15.39% of votes. The other NDA allies, including the VIP and the HAM, won 4 seats each. The Congress and the CPI-ML-L won 19 and 12 seats under the umbrella of Mahagathbandhan. The CPM and the CPI won two seats each. The owaisi -led All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) secured five seats, while Chirag Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party won just a single seat but managed to get 5.66% of votes.

In the 2015 Bihar Assembly election, Nitish Kumar allied with the RJD and the Congress. The RJD emerged as the largest party with 80 seats, while the JDU won 71, enabling Kumar to return as Chief Minister. The Congress also performed strongly, securing 27 seats, as the Mahagathbandhan clinched a commanding 178-seat majority overall. The NDA fared poorly, with the BJP winning just 53 seats. Alliance partners Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP and Upendra Kushwaha's Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) won 2 seats each, and Hindustani Awam Morcha got a single seat.