Overview
- Roughly 3.75 crore electors are set to decide the fate of 1,314 candidates today, with voting from 7 am to 5 pm or 6 pm across 18 districts.
- Key contenders include RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav in Raghopur, BJP deputy chief ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, and several ministers and celebrity entrants.
- In Mokama, JD(U) candidate Anant Kumar Singh, jailed in a campaign-period killing case, faces RJD’s Veena Devi in one of the most watched contests.
- The Election Commission has 45,341 polling stations under 100% webcasting and has deployed 121 general, 18 police and 33 expenditure observers to oversee the vote.
- An ADR analysis ahead of Phase 2 reports 32% of candidates with criminal cases and 26% facing serious charges; the next round is on November 11 with results due November 14.