On June 4, the Election Commission of India will count hundreds of millions of votes in a few hours, announcing the results of the country’s 18th Lok Sabha election. This comes after six weeks and seven phases of the world’s largest democratic exercise. The results will determine who will form India’s next government. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is seeking a third straight term, while the Congress party-led opposition hopes to upstage them.
Here’s a look at how India voted in its previous 17 elections since gaining independence in 1947.
1951-52
- Winner: The Congress party, led by Jawaharlal Nehru
- Seats won: 364 out of 489
- Vote percentage of winner: ~45%
- Second-largest party: Communist Party of India (CPI) with 16 seats
- Third-largest party: Socialist Party (SP) with 12 seats
- Voter turnout: 44.9%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1957
- Winner: Congress, led by Nehru
- Seats won: 371 out of 494
- Vote percentage of winner: 47.8%
- Second-largest party: CPI with 27 seats
- Third-largest party: Praja Socialist Party (PSP) with 19 seats
- Voter turnout: 45.4%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1962
- Winner: Congress, led by Nehru
- Seats won: 361 out of 494
- Vote percentage of winner: 44.7%
- Second-largest party: CPI with 29 seats
- Third-largest party: Swatantra Party with 18 seats
- Voter turnout: 55.4%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1967
- Winner: Congress, led by Indira Gandhi
- Seats won: 283 out of 520
- Vote percentage of winner: 40.8%
- Second-largest party: Swatantra Party with 44 seats
- Third-largest party: Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS) with 35 seats (precursor to BJP)
- Voter turnout: 61%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1971
- Winner: Congress, led by Indira Gandhi
- Seats won: 352 out of 518
- Vote percentage of winner: 43.7%
- Second-largest party: Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) with 25 seats
- Third-largest party: CPI with 23 seats
- Voter turnout: 60.5%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1977
- Winner: Bharatiya Lok Dal (BLD) – first loss for Congress in a national election
- Seats won: 295 out of 542
- Vote percentage of winner: 41.3%
- Second-largest party: Congress with 154 seats and 34.5% vote share
- Third-largest party: CPM with 22 seats
- Voter turnout: 60.5%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1980
- Winner: Congress, led by Indira Gandhi
- Seats won: 353 out of 529
- Vote percentage of winner: 42.7%
- Second-largest party: Janata Party (Secular) with 41 seats
- Third-largest party: CPM with 37 seats
- Voter turnout: 56.9%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1984
- Winner: Congress, led by Rajiv Gandhi – largest mandate ever in independent India
- Seats won: 404 out of 514
- Vote percentage of winner: 49.1%
- Second-largest party: Telugu Desam Party (TDP) with 30 seats
- Third-largest party: CPM with 22 seats
- Voter turnout: 63.6%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1989
- Largest party: Congress, led by Rajiv Gandhi – first time no party got a clear majority
- Seats won: 197 out of 529
- Vote percentage of winner: 39.5%
- Second-largest party: Janata Dal (JD) with 143 seats
- Third-largest party: BJP with 85 seats
- Voter turnout: 61.9%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1991
- Largest party: Congress, led by PV Narasimha Rao
- Seats won: 232 out of 521
- Vote percentage of winner: 36.3%
- Second-largest party: BJP with 120 seats
- Third-largest party: JD with 59 seats
- Voter turnout: 56.7%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1996
- Largest party: BJP, led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee
- Seats won: 161 out of 543
- Vote percentage of winner: 20.3%
- Second-largest party: Congress with 140 seats
- Third-largest party: JD with 46 seats
- Voter turnout: 57.9%
- Voting process: Paper ballot
1998
- Largest party: BJP, led by Vajpayee – BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) formed in May 1998
- Seats won: 182 out of 543
- Vote percentage of winner: 25.6%
- Second-largest party: Congress with 141 seats
- Third-largest party: CPM with 32 seats
- Voter turnout: 62%
- Voting process: Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) for 16 seats, paper ballots for the rest
1999
- Largest party: BJP, led by Vajpayee
- Seats won: 182 out of 543
- Vote percentage of winner: 23.8%
- Second-largest party: Congress with 114 seats
- Third-largest party: CPM with 33 seats
- Voter turnout: 60%
- Voting process: EVM for 46 seats, paper ballots for the rest
2004
- Largest party: Congress, led by Sonia Gandhi – Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) formed after the election
- Seats won: 145 out of 543
- Vote percentage of winner: 26.5%
- Second-largest party: BJP with 138 seats
- Third-largest party: CPM with 43 seats
- Voter turnout: 58.1%
- Voting process: EVM for all seats
2009
- Largest party: Congress, led by Manmohan Singh
- Seats won: 206 out of 543
- Vote percentage of winner: 28.6%
- Second-largest party: BJP with 116 seats
- Third-largest party: Samajwadi Party with 23 seats
- Voter turnout: 58.2%
- Voting process: EVM for all seats
2014
- Winner: BJP, led by Narendra Modi
- Seats won: 282 out of 543
- Vote percentage of winner: 31.3%
- Second-largest party: Congress with 44 seats
- Third-largest party: All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) with 37 seats
- Voter turnout: 66.4%
- Voting process: EVM for all seats
2019
- Winner: BJP, led by Modi
- Seats won: 303 out of 543
- Vote percentage of winner: 38.0%
- Second-largest party: Congress with 52 seats
- Third-largest party: Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) with 23 seats
- Voter turnout: 67%
- Voting process: EVM for all seats
As India prepares for the results of the 2024 Lok Sabha election, it reflects on the journey and trends of its democratic processes over the past 17 elections.
