CNN Central News & Network-ITDC India Epress/ITDC News Bhopal: How is MLC vote counting different from MLA and MP elections? Understanding the full mathematics
Lucknow. Counting of votes for 11 seats of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council is taking place on October 27. In the process that began at 8 am, votes are counted in a manner different from Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. In general elections, a voter votes for one candidate through an electronic voting machine (EVM), and the candidate who gets the highest number of votes wins. In contrast, voting for the Legislative Council’s graduate and teachers’ constituency seats is done through ballot paper, and candidates are marked in order of preference. For this reason, counting in MLC elections can be more complex and time-consuming.
1. How are votes counted in MLA and MP elections? In Assembly and Lok Sabha elections, the first-past-the-post system generally applies. Under this, a voter votes for one candidate of their choice. After counting is completed, the candidate who receives the highest number of votes is declared the winner. It is not necessary to secure more than 50% of the total valid votes to win.
2. Preference-based voting in MLC elections
On Legislative Council graduate and teachers’ constituency seats, voters write numbers such as 1, 2, 3 and so on against the names of candidates on the ballot paper according to their preference. Here, “1” indicates the first choice, “2” the second choice and “3” the third choice. A voter may give preference to more than one candidate. In this system, only first-preference votes are not important. If a candidate does not get the votes required to win and is eliminated from counting, the next-preference votes recorded on that candidate’s ballots may be transferred to other candidates as per the rules.
3. What is the mathematics of quota and vote transfer? In MLC election counting, first-preference votes are counted first. The required quota for victory is determined according to the rules of the election concerned. If a candidate secures this quota in the initial count, that candidate may be declared elected. If no candidate secures the required quota, the candidate with the lowest number of votes may be eliminated. On the basis of the next valid preferences recorded on that candidate’s ballots, votes are transferred to other candidates. If required, this process continues until a candidate gets the support required for victory or the result is decided under the applicable rules.
4. Who votes in MLC elections? The voter group is not the same for all Legislative Council seats. Different seats are elected by different electoral colleges. These include representatives of local bodies, registered graduate voters, teachers with prescribed qualifications and elected members of the Legislative Assembly. Some members are also nominated by the Governor. In Uttar Pradesh, the 11 seats for which counting is taking place this time include five graduate and six teachers’ constituency seats. Therefore, on these seats, all adult voters do not vote directly as in a general Assembly election; instead, eligible voters included in the voter list of the relevant constituency cast their votes.
5. Why can counting take more time? In Assembly and Lok Sabha elections, counting EVM results is relatively straightforward. But in preference-based MLC elections, the process includes checking the validity of ballot papers, counting first-preference votes, determining the required quota and, if needed, transferring votes of subsequent preferences. For this reason, declaration of results may take more time.
Whose prestige is at stake on UP’s 11 seats? These elections in Uttar Pradesh include five graduate and six teachers’ constituency seats. A total of 152 candidates are in the fray. Political parties are watching the contest between the BJP and the Samajwadi Party closely. However, the final picture will become clear only after counting is completed and the official announcement is made by the concerned returning officers.
Thus, the biggest feature of MLC elections is that the result is not decided only by who gets the highest number of first-preference votes. The order of preference and the process of transfer of votes can also play an important role in deciding the outcome.
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