ECI announces October 6 bye-elections for five Assembly seats and one Lok Sabha seat

September 7, 2026 6:44 PM

ECI announces October 6 bye-elections for five Assembly seats and one Lok Sabha seat

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday announced bye-elections to five Assembly constituencies across Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and West Bengal and one Lok Sabha constituency in Assam, with polling scheduled for October 6 and counting of votes on October 9. The vacancies in the Assembly constituencies have arisen following the resignation of the sitting legislators, while the Nagaon Lok Sabha seat in Assam fell vacant following the resignation of Congress leader Pradyut Bordoloi. The co...

BLOs are first point of contact between ECI and citizens: CEC Gyanesh Kumar

September 3, 2026 10:25 AM

BLOs are first point of contact between ECI and citizens: CEC Gyanesh Kumar

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Wednesday described Booth Level Officers (BLOs) as the first point of contact between the Election Commission of India (ECI) and citizens, and called them a foundational pillar of the world’s largest democracy. Kumar was interacting with more than 1,000 BLOs from different parts of Goa during a programme held in the state. In his address, the CEC said the preparation of electoral rolls and the conduct of elections in India are carried out strictly...

CEC Gyanesh Kumar calls on academia to promote electoral literacy and informed democratic participation

August 17, 2026 11:03 PM

CEC Gyanesh Kumar calls on academia to promote electoral literacy and informed democratic participation

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Monday called upon educational institutions to play a greater role in strengthening trust in the electoral process, promoting electoral literacy and encouraging informed democratic participation among young citizens. Addressing a conference on “Electoral Literacy Clubs and ECINet” at Gyan Bhawan in Patna, Kumar launched Electoral Literacy Clubs (ELC 2.0), an initiative aimed at creating structured and digitally enabled platforms for electoral edu...

ECI annuls registration of 17 inactive political parties in Uttarakhand

August 5, 2026 11:21 AM

ECI annuls registration of 17 inactive political parties in Uttarakhand

The Election Commission of India has barred 17 registered unrecognised political parties in Uttarakhand from contesting next year’s Assembly elections under their party banners after they failed to establish their existence or report any electoral activity. The action follows a verification exercise conducted by the office of the Uttarakhand Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) during which notices were issued to political parties that had remained inactive for several years. According to election ...

ECI holds first All India Media Conference to enhance understanding of electoral process

July 18, 2026 9:32 AM

ECI holds first All India Media Conference to enhance understanding of electoral process

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday organised its first All India Media Conference 2026', bringing together more than 380 media professionals from across states and Union Territories to promote greater understanding of the country's electoral process. Held under the theme 'Connecting stakeholders, strengthening democracy: Role of media in elections', the conference focused on transparency, legal safeguards and the role of stakeholders in ensuring free and fair elections. Addressin...

‘New golden chapter’: India, Indonesia sign Election Commission MoU to strengthen democratic cooperation

July 7, 2026 3:41 PM

‘New golden chapter’: India, Indonesia sign Election Commission MoU to strengthen democratic cooperation

India and Indonesia on Tuesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between their Election Commissions to strengthen democratic cooperation, marking another milestone in the growing Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries. The agreement was announced during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's three-day state visit to Indonesia, where he held bilateral talks with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto. Addressing a joint press statement after the delegation-level talks, PM...

ECI issues notification for assembly bypolls in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Bihar; nomination process begins

July 6, 2026 6:28 PM

ECI issues notification for assembly bypolls in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Bihar; nomination process begins

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday issued notifications for by-elections to three Legislative Assembly constituencies in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Bihar, formally setting the electoral process in motion with the commencement of nomination filing. The bypolls will be held for Datia (22) in Madhya Pradesh, Manjalpur (145) in Gujarat and Bankipur (182) in Bihar to fill vacant Assembly seats. According to the election schedule announced by the Commission, the last date for filing n...

ECI announces Phase-III Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls across 16 states and 3 UTs

May 14, 2026 3:20 PM

ECI announces Phase-III Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls across 16 states and 3 UTs

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday announced the launch of Phase-III of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across 16 States and three Union Territories. According to the ECI, the schedule for the third phase has been planned in coordination with the ongoing Census house-listing exercise, as both activities involve the same field-level machinery. With the rollout of Phase-III, the SIR process will now cover the entire country, barring Himachal Pradesh, Jammu...

ECI introduces QR code-based ID system to secure counting centres

April 30, 2026 4:54 PM

ECI introduces QR code-based ID system to secure counting centres

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has introduced a QR code-based Photo Identity Card system to enhance security and prevent unauthorised access at counting centres during elections. The new system will be implemented starting May 4, during the counting of votes for Assembly elections in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Puducherry, as well as bye-elections in seven constituencies across five states. The poll body said the mechanism will subsequently be extended to all future Lok S...

West Bengal records highest-ever voter turnout since Independence; Phase 2 election sees 91.66% polling

April 29, 2026 9:12 PM

West Bengal records highest-ever voter turnout since Independence; Phase 2 election sees 91.66% polling

West Bengal has recorded its highest-ever voter turnout since Independence, with an impressive 91.66% polling in Phase two of the Assembly elections on Wednesday, said the Election Commission of India (ECI). Polling for Phase-II began at 7:00 AM and continued till evening, with voter participation reaching 91.66% by 7:45 PM. Combined with Phase-I turnout of 93.19%, the overall polling percentage across the first two phases stands at a record 92.47%, surpassing the previous high of 84.72% record...