Electoral Politics Class 9 Notes

Electoral Politics Class 9 Notes explain how elections are held in India, why they are essential in a democracy, and how people choose their representatives. These notes cover key concepts such as the need for elections, the election process, reserved constituencies, Model Code of Conduct, and the importance of free and fair elections.

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Why Elections?

Haryana Assembly Elections, 1987

Haryana was ruled by the Congress party from 1982 to 1987. Chaudhary Devi Lal, a senior opposition leader, launched a campaign called Nyaya Yudh and formed a new party named Lok Dal. In the time of the campaign, Devi Lal promised to farmers and small businessmen that if he won in the election, then he would provide waived loans. People were attracted by Devi Lal’s promise, and he won the election. Devi Lal became Chief Minister of Haryana. Devi Lal fulfilled his loan waiver promise, but after some years passed, people were feeling unhappy again. People are thinking about more improvement. In the 1991 elections, Lok Dal lost public support, and Congress returned to power.

Why do we need elections?

There are more than one hundred countries in the world in which elections take place to choose people’s representatives. Elections give people the power to choose and change their leaders. They are the heart of representative democracy. In an election the voters make many choices:

They can choose who will make laws for them.
They can choose who will form the government and take major decisions.
They can choose the party whose policies will guide the government and lawmaking.

What makes an election democratic?

Elections happen in both democratic and non-democratic countries, but not all elections are fair or truly democratic. The 5 basic conditions that make an election democratic are:

First, everyone should be able to choose. This means that everyone should have one vote and every vote should have equal value.
Second, there should be something to choose from. Parties and candidates should be free to contest elections and should offer some real choice to the voters.
Third, the choice should be offered at regular intervals. Elections must be held regularly after every few years.
Fourth, the candidate preferred by the people should get elected.
Fifth, elections should be conducted in a free and fair manner where people can choose as they really wish.

Is it good to have political competition?

Elections are all about competition between political parties and candidates. Without competition elections would be meaningless. But there are some political competition.

Leaders may use unfair tricks to win the election.
Some people can avoid politics because they dislike unhealthy competition.
Leaders may focus only on short-term planning.

Even though there are some problems, constitutional skill supports it. The constitution allows free competition in elections, but in real life, leaders are not perfect:

They want power and position.
They may not always know what people need.
We can’t depend only on their sense of duty.

The election commission, instead of hoping leaders will always do the right thing, they create a system where:

Leaders are rewarded for serving the people.
Leaders are losing elections if they fail.

Political competition may cause problems, but it also forces leaders to listen to the people and work for their benefit.

What is our system of Elections?

Indian elections are truly democratic. In India elections are of two types:

General Elections: General elections are held every five years for Lok Sabha (Parliament) and Vidhan Sabha (State Assembly). After five years the term ends and the house is dissolved.
By-Elections: By-elections are held when the seat becomes empty due to the death or resignation of a member.

Electoral constituencies

In Haryana, 90 MLAs were elected, but every person voted for all 90 MLAs. The answer will be no. In India we follow an area-based system called electoral constituencies.

What is a constituency?

A constituency is a specific area where people vote to choose one representative. Every voter votes only for the candidate in their own area. There are three basic types of constituencies.

Election Type	Area Name	Leader Chosen
Lok Sabha (National)	543 constituencies	Member of Parliament (MP)
State Assembly	Assembly constituencies	Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA)
Panchayat/Municipality	Wards	Local Body Member

When we say “Lok Dal won 60 seats”, it means that Lok Dal candidates won in 60 different constituencies. So, the Lok Dal had 60 MLAs in the Haryana Assembly.

Reserved Constituencies

India’s Constitution gives every citizen the right to vote and stand for election as a representative. But the biggest challenge is about the weaker sections of society, like people from Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST), who may have a problem of money, education or social connections to win the elections. Powerful people may stop them from winning the election. If they are not elected, then their voice will not be heard in parliament or assemblies. So, that way there are reserved seats for SC and ST candidates. This helps to make sure their voices are included in government.

In an SC-reserved seat, only SC candidates can contest, and there are 84 seats reserved.
In an ST-reserved seat, only ST candidates can contest, and there are 47 seats reserved.

At the local level, in villages and towns, seats are also reserved for Other Backward Classes (OBC). One third of seats are reserved for women.

Voters’ list

Once the voting area is decided, then the next step is to make a list of who is allowed to vote. The voter’s list is prepared before the election. The voter’s list is also known as the electoral roll. This list includes all the eligible voters. This list ensures fairness, and everyone gets an equal chance to choose their leaders.

Who can vote?

The Indian citizen who is 18 or more than 18 years old can vote. It does not matter if someone is rich or poor, educated or not, or from any caste, religion or gender. Everyone is equal for voting. Only in rare cases are some people not allowed to vote, like serious criminals and people with unsound minds.

What is EPIC?

EPIC stands for Election Photo Identity Card. The government gives this card to voters. At voting time the voter carries it to the polling booth to prove their identity. But this EPIC card is not compulsory; you can also show if you have a ration card, driving licence or any other valid ID.

Nomination of candidates

In a democracy, any voter can become a candidate only if he/she qualifies following basic rules.

Minimum age is 25 years.
No serious criminal record
The candidate should be of sound mind.

The candidate has to fill out a nomination form, pay a security deposit, and make a legal declaration about criminal cases, if any, the assets and debts of the candidate and their family, and educational qualifications.

Why do candidates have to fill out a nomination form and legal declaration?

This information is made public and helps the voters to make a wise decision based on facts.

Election Campaign

The main goal of elections is to let people decide the leader through free and open discussion, and this happens during election campaigns. In India, official campaigns happen for two weeks before voting day. This time candidates are allowed to meet voters, leaders can give the speeches, parties can gather the supporters, and candidates can give advertisements in news channels or in newspapers. According to our election law, no party or candidate can:

Bribe or threaten voters;
Appeal to them in the name of caste or religion;
Use government resources for election campaigns; and
Spend more than ` 25 lakh in a constituency for a Lok Sabha election or `10 lakh in a constituency in an Assembly election.

In addition to the laws, all the political parties in our country have agreed to a Model Code of Conduct for election campaigns. According to this, no party or candidate can:

Use any place of worship for election propaganda;
Use government vehicles, aircraft and officials for elections; and
Once elections are announced, ministers shall not lay foundation stones of any projects, take any big policy decisions or make any promises of providing public facilities.

Polling and counting of votes

The final step is when the people go for voting. This is called an Election Day. Usually polling booths are set up in a school or government office. In election time election officials:

Check the voter’s name.
Mark their finger with ink.
Allow them to vote.

Each candidate has an agent in the polling booth to make sure voting is fair. Voters used ballot papers or Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) to give votes.

What happens after voting?

All EVMs are sealed and kept in a safe place. On a fixed day the EVMs are opened and votes are counted. Candidate agents are present to ensure fair counting. In a general election, counting can happen on the same day across the country. TV, radio and newspapers report the result.

What makes Elections in India Democratic?

We get to read a lot about unfair practices in elections. Newspapers and television reports often refer to such allegations. Most of these reports are about the following:

Inclusion of false names and exclusion of genuine names in the voters’ list;
Misuse of government facilities and officials by the ruling party;
Excessive use of money by rich candidates and big parties; and
Intimidation of voters and rigging on the polling day.

Independent Election Commission

India has a strong and independent Election Commission (EC), just like a judiciary. The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) is appointed by the President of India. Once appointed, the CEC cannot be removed easily, even if the government does not like their decisions. The EC controls every part of the election, like:

Announcing elections and declaring results
Enforcing the Code of Conduct and punishing violators
Ordering the government to follow rules during election
Transferring officials to prevent misuse of power
Controlling government officers during election duty

If EC finds that voting was not fair in any booth or area, it can give permission for a repoll. Even if the ruling party disagrees.

Popular participation

One way to check the quality of elections is to see how actively people participate. Key signs of healthy participation in India are:

In India, poor, illiterate and marginalised groups vote more than the rich.
Common people in India believe elections help them influence policies.
One-third of voters joined campaign activities.

Acceptance of election outcome

One way to check if the election is free and fair is to look at the result. If the election were unfair, the powerful would always win, and the losing party would refuse to accept the result. Candidates who spend lots of money or have criminal backgrounds often lose the result.

Important Information

Code of Conduct: A set of norms and guidelines to be followed by political parties and contesting candidates during election time.
Constituency: Voters in a geographical area who elect a representative to the legislative bodies.
Incumbent: The current holder of a political office. Usually the choice for the voters in elections is between the incumbent party or candidate and those who oppose them.
Level playing field: A condition in which all parties and candidates contesting in an election have equal opportunities to appeal for votes and to carry out an election campaign.
Rigging: Fraud and malpractices indulged in by a party or candidate to increase its votes. It includes stuffing ballot boxes by a few persons using the votes of others, recording multiple votes by the same person, and bribing or coercing polling officers to favour a candidate.
Turnout: The percentage of eligible voters who cast their votes in an election.

Social Science Class 9 Notes

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