Patna: Counting of votes for the 243 seats of the Bihar Assembly began on Friday morning, with postal ballots opened first across all counting centres. Officials expect the postal ballot count to be completed by 8:30am, after which Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) will be unlocked and the first trends will begin to emerge. In each counting hall, 14 tables have been set up to process 14 EVMs per round. Barbigha is expected to be the first constituency to declare its result.
A total of 46 counting centres have been established across 38 districts. By noon, officials say, the outcome for most of the 2,616 candidates—including 29 ministers in the Nitish Kumar government and 15 strongmen such as Anant Singh—will be largely clear.
#WATCH | Patna: Bihar Assembly Election Results | Mahagathbandhan’s CM face and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav says, “We are going to win. Thanks to everyone. A change is about to come. We are forming the government” pic.twitter.com/p6pVag0e96
— ANI (@ANI) November 14, 2025
Security has been tightened statewide. Water cannons have been deployed outside the Motihari counting centre, and additional forces have been positioned near the Chief Minister’s residence in Patna. At AN College in Patna, where votes from the district’s 14 constituencies are being counted, staff and election agents are being screened before entering the halls. The counting will determine the fate of 149 candidates in the capital district alone.
This year’s election was conducted in two phases, with a record turnout of 67.10%—nearly ten percentage points higher than in the 2020 Assembly polls. Early trends are expected to begin appearing shortly after 9am, setting the tone for what is being described as one of the most tightly contested elections in the state’s recent history.
