Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 150
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 151
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 148]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 181]
LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Only 120 winning candidates in 2009 got over 50% votes

Only 120 winning candidates in 2009 got over 50% votes

Share this article Share this article
published Published on Mar 23, 2014   modified Modified on Mar 23, 2014
-The Times of India


NEW DELHI: Is our democracy truly representative? Election Commission (EC) data on percentage of votes secured by winning candidates in various constituencies show it may not be so. In the 2009 general elections, only 120 winning candidates out of the 543 could secure 50 per cent or more votes polled in their respective constituencies.

This meant that on remaining 423 seats (nearly 78 per cent of seats), the winning candidates had the approval of less than half of the electorate.

Elections to the Lok Sabha are carried out using the first-past-the-post electoral system. Under this system, the candidate securing the maximum votes of the total votes polled is declared elected, irrespective of percentage of total votes polled or the total number of eligible voters.

The EC data have some silver linings. Delhi, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Kerala, Gujarat and Maharashtra are some of the better states in terms of consolidation of votes in favour of winning candidates.

While Delhi had six out of seven candidates winning more than 50 per cent votes, Rajasthan was second best with 15 of the 25 winning candidates in that category.

Half of the 42 winning candidates in West Bengal secured the approval of more than 50 per cent of the electorate. Gujarat with eight of the 26 candidates and Kerala with eight out of 20 candidates getting 50 per cent or more votes came next.

Among the larger states, Madhya Pradesh (7), Maharashtra (10) and Odisha (5) did well with over 20 per cent of their winning candidates getting more than 50 per cent of the votes polled.

Among the worst performing states is Andhra Pradesh where only one out of 42 candidates could get more than 50 per cent votes polled in his constituency. With multi-cornered fights on most seats, UP too did badly with only nine out of 80 candidates securing more than 50 per cent votes.

Amid states with 10 or more Lok Sabha seats, Jharkhand was the only state where none of the winners could get 50 per cent or more of total votes polled. Apart from Jharkhand, states/UTs like Goa, Manipur, Meghalaya, Uttarakhand, Andaman and Nicobar, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Puducherry had no winners with more than half of the votes polled.


The Times of India, 23 March, 2014, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/specials/lok-sabha-elections-2014/news/Only-120-winning-candidates-in-2009-got-over-50-votes/articleshow/32523742.cms?


Related Articles

 

Write Comments

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

Video Archives

Archives

share on Facebook
Twitter
RSS
Feedback
Read Later

Contact Form

Please enter security code
      Close