New Delhi: The Election Commission has issued a notification for the September 9 election to the post of vice-president, kickstarting the nomination process. According to the notification, August 21 is the last date for filing nominations, while the documents will be scrutinised on August 22.
The post fell vacant on July 21 following the surprise resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar, citing health reasons. Dhankhar’s tenure was to end in August 2027.
According to constitutional provisions, in case of a mid-term poll, the incumbent gets a full five-year term.
The vice-presidential election is set to be a keen contest with the Congress-led opposition likely to field a common candidate to take on the BJP-led NDA, which has the numbers on its side.
The Electoral College for the vice presidential election comprises members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. The nominated members of the Rajya Sabha, too, are eligible to vote in the vice presidential election. The electoral college for the vice presidential election comprises 233 elected members of the Rajya Sabha, 12 nominated members of the Rajya Sabha, and 543 members of the Lok Sabha.
The effective strength of both the Upper and Lower Houses together is 782, and the winning candidate will require 391 votes, considering that all eligible voters exercise their franchise.
