When is Presidential election? All you need to know about the polls

In the last election in 2017, Ram Nath Kovind became the President after defeating joint opposition candidate Meira Kumar. Kovind polled 7,02,000 votes compared with Kumar’s 3,67,000, out of a total of 10,69,358 votes.

When is the presidential election?

Here are the focus points from the ECI’s presser:

“The ECI has fixed the schedule for the election of the office of the President of India. The notification for the election will be issued on June 15, the last date for nomination is scheduled for June 29, while the polls are to be held on July 18. The counting of the votes, if needed, shall be done on July 21,” Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said at a press conference in New Delhi.

“The commission has decided to maintain all Covid precautions and protocols on polling day,” he added.

Check out the full schedule for Presidential Elections 2022 here 👇#PresidentialElection2022 #ElectionCommissionOfIndia pic.twitter.com/bvtxGe4PDw

— Election Commission of India #SVEEP (@ECISVEEP) June 9, 2022

The President is elected by the members of the Electoral College consisting of elected members of both Houses of Parliament, and elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of all States including National Capital Territory of Delhi and the Union Territory of Puducherry.

However, the nominated members of either Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha or Legislative Assemblies of the states are not eligible to be included in the Electoral College and therefore, are not entitled to participate in the election process. Similarly, members of the Legislative Councils are also not electors for the Presidential election.

 Nadda, Rajnath to hold talks with other parties on BJP’s behalf

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday authorised its president JP Nadda and Union minister Rajnath Singh to hold consultations with different political parties, including those in the Opposition, on the President’s election, in what is being seen as an outreach by the ruling party to arrive at a consensus on the choice for the top constitutional post.

Going by its strength in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha as well as in many state assemblies, the BJP is in a comfortable position to ensure the victory of the candidate nominated by it in the upcoming election.

The two senior leaders will talk to both ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and opposition United Progressive Alliance (UPA) constituents, besides other political parties as well as independent members, the BJP said in a statement issued by its general secretary Arun Singh.

Mamata to host Opposition meet on June 15 

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday wrote to Opposition leaders, requesting them to attend a meeting convened by her on June 15 in New Delhi to prepare a joint strategy for the upcoming presidential polls. Banerjee sent a letter to 22 leaders, including Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, and CPI (M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury.

She said the Presidential election provides the perfect opportunity for all progressive Opposition parties to deliberate on the future course of national politics when “divisive forces are plaguing the country”.

Meanwhile, Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday said party president Sonia Gandhi has asked him to hold talks with all like-minded parties on the possibility of fielding a common candidate for the Presidential polls. Following her direction, Kharge, who is Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, called on NCP chief Sharad Pawar here to discuss the issue.

Probable candidates

The government as well as the Opposition is yet to name any candidate for the Presidential poll. However, some leaders have shown interest in throwing their hats into the ring.

The JD(U) has already set the cat among the pigeons by suggesting Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar could be a presidential candidate. JD(U) leader and Kumar’s ministerial colleague, Shravan Kumar, had proposed publicly that Kumar “can be a good candidate for the President of India.”

Only an official announcement of candidates, including by the NDA of which the JD(U) is a part, may put an end to the current round of speculations.

However, since 1997, there has been contest between only two candidates – one of the ruling dispensation and the other supported by the Opposition, after a change of law making it mandatory for 50 MPs to propose the candidate for the election to the highest office in the country and another 50 seconding his candidature.

(With inputs from PTI, ENS)