Patna: Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar confirmed on Sunday that the Bihar Assembly elections will be held before November 22, 2025, when the tenure of the current Assembly concludes. Addressing a press conference in Patna, Kumar said the state has 243 constituencies, including two reserved for Scheduled Tribes and 38 for Scheduled Castes.

He said the Election Commission has completed the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls, which began on June 24 and was finished within the deadline. “We congratulate the voters of India and thank everyone for the successful completion of the SIR process. I appeal to all the voters of Bihar to celebrate this festival of democracy with the same enthusiasm as Chhath,” Kumar said.

The CEC praised Bihar’s 90,217 booth-level officers for their exemplary work in cleaning the voter lists, saying their efforts set an example for the rest of the country. “Just as Vaishali showed the world the path to democracy, Bihar will once again inspire the nation through its voter list cleansing initiative,” he said.

The Election Commission’s senior officials were on a two-day review visit to Bihar to assess the poll preparations.

Politically, the Bihar elections are expected to be a direct contest between the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) — led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar — and the opposition Mahagathbandhan alliance, led by the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).

Currently, in the 243-member Assembly, the NDA holds 131 seats (BJP 80, JD(U) 45, HAM(S) 4, and two Independents), while the Mahagathbandhan controls 111 (RJD 77, Congress 19, CPI(ML) 11, CPI(M) 2, and CPI 2).

With the poll schedule expected to be announced soon, political activity across the state has intensified, as both alliances step up campaigns and trade barbs in what is likely to be one of the most closely watched state elections this year.