Presidential Poll 2022: Droupadi Murmu, Yashwant Sinha Ready For Face-Off As MLAs, MPs Set To Vote Today

NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu is believed to have an upper hand with the support of regional parties like BJD, YSRCP, BSP, AIADMK, TDP, JD(S), Shiromani Akali Dal, Shiv Sena, and JMM

New Delhi: The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate Droupadi Murmu and Opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha are set for a face-off on Monday as nearly 4,800 elected MPs and MLAs vote on Monday to elect the 15th President of India. NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu seems to have a clear edge over Sinha as over 60 per cent of votes are expected to be cast in her favour, reported news agency PTI. The voting for the presidential election will begin at 10 am and end at 5 pm for which ballot boxes have already reached their destinations. The counting of votes will take place at Parliament House on July 21 and the swearing-in ceremony of the new President will be held on July 25 after the declaration of the results.

The preparations have been completed for the election as six booths have been set up in room number 63 of the Parliament House. A total of nine MLAs from different states will vote in the Parliament House including four from UP, two from Tripura, and one each from Assam, Odisha, and Haryana while 42 MPs will vote in the assemblies.

President Ram Nath Kovind’s five-year term ends on July 24, and as per Article 62 of the Constitution, an election for the next president must be held before the completion of the incumbent’s term.

Droupadi Murmu is the NDA candidate in the presidential election. She has previously served as the ninth governor of Jharkhand from 2015 to 2021. If Murmu wins the presidential election, she will become the first tribal woman to become the President.

Yashwant Sinha is the Opposition’s choice

On behalf of the Opposition, former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha has been selected as the presidential candidate. He served as the finance minister in the government of former PM Chandrashekhar from 1990 to 1991 and again in the government of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee from 1998 to 2002. Yashwant Sinha also served as the minister of external affairs. Before leaving the party in 2018, he was a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party. After this, he joined the All India Trinamool Congress. However, he left TMC a day before he was elected as the presidential candidate.

NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu has a clear edge over Opposition candidate

The 64-year-old former Jharkhand governor and tribal leader Droupadi Murmu was nominated as the BJP-led NDA's Presidential candidate for the upcoming polls NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu is believed to have an upper hand in the presidential election. She has got the support of regional parties like BJD, YSRCP, BSP, AIADMK, TDP, JD(S), Shiromani Akali Dal, Shiv Sena, and JMM. Droupadi Murmu's vote share is likely to reach nearly two-thirds. The NDA nominee now has over 6.67 lakh votes after the support of various regional parties, out of a total of 10,86,431 votes, as per the PTI report.

What is the value of the votes of MPs and MLAs?

The electoral college which elects the President through the system of proportional representation comprises elected MPs and members of state legislative assemblies. Nominated MPs and MLAs, and members of legislative councils are not entitled to vote in this election.

The system of the secret ballot is followed and parties cannot issue whips to their MPs and MLAs with regard to voting.

MPs will get a green-coloured ballot paper, the MLAs will get a pink ballot paper to cast their vote. Separate colours help the returning officer ascertain the value of the vote of each MLA and MP, as per the EC directions.

In a bid to ensure the secrecy of voting, the EC has issued a specially designed pen with violet ink to enable voters to mark their ballot papers in the presidential poll.

According to the Election Commission, this time the value of the vote of an MP is 700. At the same time, the value of the vote of each MLA is different in different states. The value of the vote of each MLA is 208 in Uttar Pradesh, then 176 in Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu. After this Maharashtra has 175. In Sikkim, the vote value of each MLA is seven, while it is nine in Nagaland and eight in Mizoram. After the voting, the results of the Presidential election will be declared on July 21.