At the close of polling on Tuesday in the two-phase 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, the state achieved its highest-ever voter turnout, while women’s participation smashed previous records, signalling a powerful shift in electoral engagement in India’s eastern heartland.
According to a press release from the Election Commission of India (ECI), Bihar recorded an overall turnout of 67.13% — the highest since the first elections in 1951.
Of that, women cast votes at a turnout of 71.78%, while men recorded 62.98%.
Women Leading the Way
Women voters in Bihar didn’t just vote in large numbers — they significantly outvoted men, both in percentage terms and likely in absolute numbers.
In earlier reports, the figure 71.6% female turnout against 62.8% male was cited, making for a gap of 8.8 percentage points — the largest ever recorded in the state.
According to the ECI’s electoral rolls after the “Special Intensive Revision” (SIR) of voter lists, there were around 3.93 crore (39.3 million) male electors and 3.51 crore (35.1 million) female electors — a gap of roughly 42.34 lakh.
Based on turnout percentages, initial estimates point to approximately 2.52 crore women casting their ballots, compared to about 2.47 crore men.
That would mark the first time in Bihar’s history that women have outvoted men in absolute numbers.
District-Wise Trends and Deepening Gender Gap
The female-male gap in voter turnout was not uniform — in several districts it was much larger.
In at least seven districts, women’s turnout exceeded men’s by over 14 percentage points, and in ten others the gap was more than 10 points.
For example, in the district of Supau, women recorded 83.69% turnout compared with 62.98% among men — a gap of 20.71 points.
Interestingly, in the state capital district of Patna, the trend reversed: 60.05% men voted, while only 57.88% of women turned out — the only district where men edged out women.
Context & Historical Background
The phenomenon of women’s turnout surpassing men in Bihar is not entirely new — it began in the 2005 Assembly elections and has become more pronounced since then.
In 2015, for example, the gap in female-male turnout was 7.16 percentage points.
Before 2010, men consistently voted for women in Bihar.
In 1977, the gap in favour of men reached as high as 23.17 percentage points.
On the national level, however, the gender gap remains small. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, women’s turnout was 65.8% compared to 65.55% for men — a difference of only 0.25 percentage points.
Why This Surge Among Women?
Analysts point to several factors driving women’s heightened participation:
- The SIR exercise cleaned up electoral rolls — though interestingly, more women than men were removed in that process, yet women’s turnout still rose.
- A series of welfare schemes aimed at women voters, including the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana and direct cash transfers, may have boosted political mobilisation and the sense of empowerment.
- A broader cultural shift: women voters in Bihar have increasingly asserted their role as decisive actors at the ballot box, and political parties have responded to this shift by tailoring outreach and services.
Implications
This unprecedented turnout and gender shift carry implications for political strategies, governance, and empowerment:
- Women’s turnout outpacing men may alter party calculations — leaders cannot assume male votes will dominate.
- The scale and direction of the female lead suggest that women are not only casting ballots in greater numbers but also exercising choice.
- The link between welfare policies and electoral participation is underscored — what happens after the polls, in terms of delivering on promises, will matter.
- For democracy itself, higher turnout — especially among previously under-represented groups — strengthens legitimacy and the notion of government by consent.
In summary, the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections have marked a turning point. With overall turnout at a historic high, and women voters setting record marks both absolutely and relatively, the electoral map of Bihar may very well reflect a new dynamic — one in which gender is not simply a demographic footnote, but a defining force.
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