Presidential Elections 2022: Polling Begins To Elect India's 15th President As MLAs & MPs Cast Votes

As the tenure of President Ram Nath Kovind is coming to an end on July 24, the polling to elect the new president began at 10 am on Monday. This time, around 4,800 Member of State Legislative Assemblies (MLAs) and Member of Parliament (MPs) will cast their votes to elect the 15th President of India. The counting of votes and the new president's oath-taking ceremony will occur on July 21 and 25, respectively.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate Draupadi Murmu has a clear dominant edge after being backed up by the BJP, BSP, JD(S), AIADMK, and YSRCP. In contrast, the joint-opposition candidate for the presidential election, Yashwant Sinha, backed up by the INC, NCP, TMC, and AAP, is expected to have a tough run.

According to the NDAs supporting MLAs and MPs, Draupadi Murmu is likely to receive nearly 60-70 per cent of the total vote, and Yashwant Sinha is expected to receive 30-40 per cent of voting in favour.

As figures suggest, if Draupadi Murmu is elected as the 15th President of India, she will become the first woman to hold the country's top constitutional post from the tribal community. The picture of the polling result will become clear on July 21 after the counting of votes.

In this presidential election, the Indian National Congress (INC), with the support of other regional parties, made a joint-opposition camp. Before naming Sinha, the camp approached NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Former Governor of Bengal, Gopalkrishna Gandhi, and leader of Nation Conference, Farooq Abdullah. After days of brainstorming and rejection from candidates, the camp approached and finalised Sinha with his approval to be the face of presidential elections representing the joint-opposition camp, reported Indian Express.

Polling In 'Presidential Elections 2022'

In the early hours, many prominent political leaders have shown up in the state legislative assemblies and parliament house to cast their votes. Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at the parliament at around 10: 30 am to mark his vote.

During the 16th #PresidentialElection, PM @narendramodi votes for the new President. pic.twitter.com/MR4I57XtYd

— DD News (@DDNewslive) July 18, 2022

Madhya Pradesh CM @ChouhanShivraj casts his vote during the 16th #PresidentialElection to elect the new President of India. pic.twitter.com/zGTpWaPLEH

— DD News (@DDNewslive) July 18, 2022

In several states, CMs including Eknath Shinde, Pushkar Singh Dhami, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and YS Jagan Mohan Reddy was also seen in their respective state assemblies casting their vote.

In the 2017 presidential elections, Ram Nath Kovind was the NDA's presidential candidate who successfully won the elections after defeating joint-opposition candidate Meira Kumar. Out of a total 10,69,358 vote value, Kovind polled over 7 lakh votes, and Kumar bagged nearly 3 lakh votes.

Also Read: Indian Govt Calls For All-Party Meeting Over Sri Lanka Crisis; Sitharaman, Jaishankar Set To Brief