Bihar election 2025 highlights: Polling concludes with 68.94% turnout amid heavy security

A member of Central Reserve Police Force stands guard near women in queue to cast their vote, at a polling station during the second and final phase of Bihar state assembly election, in Jehanabad, India, November 11, 2025. REUTERS/Sonu Kishan

Bihar election 2025 highlights: Voting for the second phase of the Bihar Assembly election concluded at 6 pm. Following the final phase of voting, the highly anticipated exit polls have kickstarted. In first projections, Peoples Pulse predicts clear edge for NDA. The voter turnout in the final round stood at 68.94%, according to the Election Commission of India.

Katihar led the chart with 78.87 per cent followed by Kishanganj (78.15 per cent), Purnea (76.32 per cent) and Supaul (72.72 per cent). Earlier, the police announced closure of borders with Nepal in view of the deadly blasts near the iconic Red Fort in Delhi, and the ongoing assembly elections in Bihar. This is being done to ensure peaceful elections are conducted, Bihar's Director General of Police Vinay Kumar said on Tuesday.

Earlier, the police announced closure of borders with Nepal in view of the deadly blasts near the iconic Red Fort in Delhi, and the ongoing assembly elections in Bihar.

This is being done to ensure peaceful elections are conducted, Bihar's Director General of Police Vinay Kumar said on Tuesday.

"The Police is alert following the incident that occurred in Delhi yesterday, to ensure no such incident happens in Bihar. The international border along Bihar hafs been sealed for the past 72 hours in view of the elections," DGP Kumar told ANI here on Tuesday afternoon.

BJP leader predicts big win for NDA

Amid robust voting for the last phase of voting in Bihar, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Ashwini Kumar Choubey said the the National Democratic Alliance would return with a thumping majority of 180 seats.

"I feel that voting is happening in favour of the NDA... Everyone is voting in the name of development, in the name of making a developed Bihar, under the guidance of the NDA government, CM Nitish Kumar, and PM Modi... We are getting more than 180 seats, which will go up to 200," was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

As voting for the final round of voting continues in Bihar, the turnout at 11am stood at 31.38%, with Kishanganj leading the charts with 34.74% turnout, followed by Gaya at 34.07% and Jamui at 33.69%. The corresponding turnout for phase 1 stood at 27.65%.

Meanwhile, leaders of the opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and ruling NDA alliance are making big statements, with both sides exuding confidence of winning the polls. RJD MP Manoj Jha has expressed confidence in a Mahagathbandhan victory, saying that the change which was seen in the first phase of polling has turned into a "big wave", which will oust the NDA from Bihar.

Arrests in Motihari

Earlier, two people were arrested for showing symbols of the BJP at multiple locations in Motihari constituency after the RJD highlighted the issue.

Voting for the last phase for 122 Assembly seats in Bihar is underway as over 37 million voters, including 17.4 million women, are eligible to cast their vote across 45,399 polling stations. Polls across the 20 districts that started at 7 AM will close at 5 PM.

Voting underway for by-polls on 8 Assembly seats

Voting is also underway for by-elections on eight Assembly seats across 6 states and one Union Territory. These seats are Budgam and Nagrota in Jammu and Kashmir, Anta in Rajasthan, Ghatsila in Jharkhand, Jubilee Hills in Telangana, Tarn Taran in Punjab, Dampa in Mizoram and Nuapada in Odisha.

PM Modi's message for voters

Urging voters to set new record in second and final phase pf voting on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged people to participate enthusiastically in the polling. "I especially urge my young friends from the state, who are voting for the first time, to not only cast their votes but also inspire others to do so," the prime minister said.

Bihar recorded the highest ever voter turnout of over 65 per cent in the polling across 121 constituencies in the first phase of the assembly elections. The counting of votes will take place on November 14.

Key candidates and seats

In the fray for the second phase are former deputy CM Tarkishore Prasad (Katihar), former speaker Uday Narain Choudhary (Sikandra), and several ex-ministers such as Vinay Bihari (Lauriya), Narayan Prasad (Nautan), Shamim Ahmed (Narkatia), Rana Randhir Singh (Madhuban), Pramod Kumar (Motihari), and Sunil Kumar Pintu (Sitamarhi). Another notable candidate in the fray is Renu Devi, the BJP’s senior leader and former deputy chief minister.

Furthermore, Kahalgaon, Narpatganj, Forbesganj, Mokama, Valmiki Nagar are among the constituencies to keep an eye out for today.

Nearly 65 percent voter turnout for Phase 1

The first phase of polling held on November 6, covering 121 constituencies across 18 districts, recorded a voter turnout of 64.66%, the highest-ever in Bihar. To be sure, this number came after the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls trimmed the electorate in Bihar from 78.9 million people to 74.2 million.

Exit polls today

Following the final phase of voting, the highly anticipated exit polls will also be announced today. Since voting ends at 5 PM, the exit poll predictions for the next Bihar government are expected to start around 6:30 PM.

Exit poll predictions are now held back until after voting has concluded due to the rules issued by the Election Commission of India.

The high-stakes contest across Bihar will decide whether chief minister Nitish Kumar’s JD(U)-BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will retain power or if Tejashwi Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)-led INDIA bloc succeeds in unseating the nine-time chief minister.