Elections and Electoral Systems

Why Elections Matter in the NDA Syllabus

India is a representative democracy. Citizens do not directly make laws; instead they elect representatives who do it on their behalf. Free and fair elections are what give those representatives their legitimacy.

In the NDA Polity section, elections appear almost every year because the facts are fixed and easy to test — the voting age, the head of the Election Commission, the relevant Articles, and so on.

Understand the logic once, and you rarely need to revise it again. This makes elections one of the best return-on-effort topics in the whole Polity paper.

Think about the sheer scale involved. India has more than 90 crore registered voters, lakhs of polling booths and counting centres, and elections that can stretch over several weeks in multiple phases. Running such a massive exercise smoothly, peacefully and fairly is no small achievement. The institutions and rules you study here are exactly what make that possible. Understanding them helps you appreciate not just what to write in the exam, but how the world’s biggest democracy actually functions on the ground.

Universal Adult Franchise and Voting Age

Universal adult franchise means that every adult citizen has the right to vote, regardless of caste, religion, gender, education, income or property. This principle is the foundation of equality in our democracy.

At the start of the Republic, the voting age was 21 years. The 61^st Constitutional Amendment Act, 1988 lowered it to 18 years, with effect from 1989.

One person gets one vote, and every vote carries equal value. This is captured in the phrase “one person, one vote, one value.” No citizen can be given extra votes based on wealth or status. This was a bold and progressive decision in 1950, because many older democracies of the world had only slowly extended voting rights over decades, often excluding women, the poor or the uneducated. India chose to give everyone the vote from the very beginning.

To actually cast a vote, a person must be a citizen of India, must be at least 18 years old, and must have their name on the electoral roll of the constituency. Certain people are barred from voting — for example, those declared of unsound mind by a competent court, or those disqualified due to corrupt or illegal electoral practices. Apart from such narrow exceptions, the franchise is genuinely universal.

The Election Commission of India

The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a permanent, independent constitutional body created under Article 324. It superintends, directs and controls elections to:

• Parliament (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha)
• State Legislatures
• The offices of the President and Vice-President

The ECI was set up on 25 January 1950 — a date now celebrated as National Voters’ Day.

Composition and Independence of the ECI

Originally the ECI was a single-member body with only the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC). Since 1993 it has been a multi-member body, consisting of the CEC and two Election Commissioners (ECs).

All three members have equal powers and receive equal salary. Decisions are taken by majority where there is a difference of opinion.

How independence is protected

• The CEC can be removed only through the same process as a Supreme Court judge — by Parliament through impeachment.
• The two ECs can be removed only on the recommendation of the CEC.
• Their service conditions cannot be varied to their disadvantage after appointment.

These safeguards ensure the ECI can act without fear of the government of the day. Because the ruling party itself contests elections, it is vital that the body refereeing those elections cannot be pressured, sacked or bribed by whoever is in power. The strong removal procedure for the CEC is the single most important guarantee of this independence, and it is a favourite point for examiners.

What Electoral System Does India Use?

For most elections (Lok Sabha and State Assemblies), India follows the First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) system, also called the simple majority or plurality system.

In FPTP, the country is divided into territorial constituencies. The candidate who gets the most votes in a constituency wins — even if that is less than half the total votes cast.

Where proportional representation is used

The President, Vice-President and members of the Rajya Sabha and State Legislative Councils are elected by proportional representation through the single transferable vote system.

Types of Elections and By-Elections

You should be able to tell these apart clearly:

• General Election: Held across the whole country (or state) when the term of the house ends, to fill all seats at once.
• Mid-term Election: Held when a house is dissolved before completing its full term.
• By-Election (Bye-election): Held in a single constituency to fill a vacancy caused by death, resignation or disqualification of the sitting member.

Direct elections (by the people) are used for the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies. Indirect elections (by an electoral college) are used for the President, Vice-President and Rajya Sabha.

The difference matters in the exam. In a direct election, ordinary voters cast their vote straight for the candidate or party of their choice — this is how you elect your local MP or MLA. In an indirect election, an intermediate group of already-elected representatives does the voting on the people’s behalf. For instance, the President is chosen by an electoral college of elected MPs and elected members of state assemblies, not by the general public directly. Keep this distinction crisp, because questions often mix the two.

Electoral Rolls and Conduct of Polls

Before any election, the ECI prepares and updates the electoral roll — the official list of voters for each constituency. Only those whose names appear on this roll may vote.

Article 325 guarantees that there shall be one general electoral roll for every constituency, and no person may be excluded on grounds only of religion, race, caste or sex.

Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs)

India now uses EVMs instead of paper ballots. EVMs were first used in a limited way in 1982 (Kerala) and have been used nationwide since the early 2000s. Many machines are now paired with VVPAT (Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail) for transparency.

An EVM has two units — a control unit kept with the polling officer and a balloting unit placed in the voting compartment. When you press the button against your chosen candidate, the vote is recorded electronically. The VVPAT prints a small slip showing the candidate’s name and symbol, visible through a window for a few seconds, so the voter can confirm the vote was cast correctly. EVMs cut down on counting time, eliminate invalid or wrongly-marked ballots, and make booth capturing far harder than with paper.

Model Code of Conduct

The Model Code of Conduct (MCC) is a set of guidelines issued by the ECI that political parties and candidates must follow during elections. It comes into force the moment the election schedule is announced and remains in force until results are declared.

What it controls

• No use of caste or communal appeals to win votes.
• No bribing or intimidation of voters.
• The ruling party cannot use government machinery or funds for campaigning.
• No new policies, schemes or projects may be announced once the code is active.

Despite not being a statute, the MCC is taken seriously, and breaches can attract action under existing election laws.

Election Disputes and Key Articles

Article 329 bars courts from interfering in electoral matters during an ongoing election. An election can be challenged only after it is over, through an election petition presented to the appropriate High Court.

The main law governing elections is the Representation of the People Act, 1951, which deals with the conduct of elections, qualifications, disqualifications and corrupt practices.

Worked Example

This shows the core feature of FPTP: the winner needs only a plurality (the most votes), not more than half. This is exactly the kind of conceptual twist the NDA paper loves to test.

Previous-Year Style Question

Quick Revision

Read this recap the night before the exam and you will comfortably handle most election-based questions in the Polity section.