The Election Commission on Wednesday announced that it had started the process for holding the election for the post of Vice-President, less than 48 hours after former V-P Jagdeep Dhankhar’s sudden mid-term resignation on Monday evening.
In a statement, the EC said the Ministry of Home Affairs had notified Dhankhar’s resignation on Tuesday.
“The Election Commission of India, under Article 324, is mandated to conduct the election to the office of the Vice President of India. The election to the office of the Vice President of India is governed by the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952, and the rules made thereunder, namely the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Rules, 1974. Accordingly, the Election Commission of India has already started the preparations relating to the Vice-Presidential Elections, 2025,” the EC said.
It added that once preparations are complete, the election schedule would be announced as soon as possible. Among the activities that have commenced are the preparation of the electoral college — which consists of elected as well as nominated members of the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha — finalisation of the Returning Officer/Assistant Returning Officer(s), and preparation and dissemination of background material on all previous Vice-Presidential elections, the EC said.
Under the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, the Election Commission is bound by a 30 to 32-day statutory timeline once it notifies the election schedule. The law allows 14 days for filing nominations, followed by one day for scrutiny and a two-day window for withdrawal of candidatures. If a poll is required, it must be held no earlier than 15 days after the withdrawal deadline — making it at least 32 days from notification to result.
The Vice-President is elected by an electoral college made up of members from both Houses of Parliament — Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha — including nominated members. Unlike in a presidential election, state legislatures do not participate.
Voting is held in Parliament House in New Delhi, by secret ballot, using the system of proportional representation with a single transferable vote. Each MP casts a vote by ranking candidates in order of preference. All votes carry equal value.
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To be declared elected, a candidate must reach a required minimum number of votes — called the quota. This is calculated by dividing the total number of valid votes by two and adding one (fractions, if any, are ignored). If no candidate crosses the quota in the first round, the one with the fewest first-preference votes is eliminated, and their votes are transferred to the remaining candidates based on second preferences. The process continues until one candidate crosses the quota.
Dhankhar, the former West Bengal governor and a lawyer by profession, was elected to the post of V-P in 2022. His term was to end in August 2027. Citing health concerns, he wrote a resignation letter to President Droupadi Murmu on Monday evening, just hours after he had presided over the proceedings of the Rajya Sabha.
According to sources, there was friction between the government and Dhankhar over his decision to admit an Opposition-moved impeachment motion against Justice Yashwant Verma in the Upper House on Monday evening, even as the BJP was preparing to move its own motion with the support of Opposition MPs in the Lok Sabha.
The only public statement from the government so far was Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s post on X on Tuesday: “Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar Ji has got many opportunities to serve our country in various capacities, including as the Vice President of India. Wishing him good health,” the PM said.
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