comScore
Active Stocks
Fri Dec 01 2023 15:59:55
  1. Tata Steel share price
  2. 129.95 1.56%
  1. Reliance Industries share price
  2. 2,393.45 0.72%
  1. NTPC share price
  2. 269.05 2.97%
  1. ICICI Bank share price
  2. 946.35 1.19%
  1. HDFC Bank share price
  2. 1,555.5 -0.22%
Business News/ Elections / Assembly Elections/  Rajasthan polls: A look at the success rate of female candidates in last 35 years
Back Back

Rajasthan polls: A look at the success rate of female candidates in last 35 years

In the outgoing Assembly, 24 out of the 200 MLAs were women, forming 12 percent of the legislative strength.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national vice president and former Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje is arguably the tallest women candidate in the fray in this election (ANI Photo) (Vasundhara Raje-X)Premium
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national vice president and former Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje is arguably the tallest women candidate in the fray in this election (ANI Photo) (Vasundhara Raje-X)

Increasing the electoral participation of women has been a key subject of discussion, particularly since the passage of the Women's Reservation Bill earlier this year. In poll-bound Rajasthan, the share of women among the total candidates in the fray is low – at 183 out of 1,875.

In the outgoing Assembly, 24 out of the 200 MLAs were women, forming 12 percent of the legislative strength. This is way lower than the 50 percent legislative share of women, as envisaged in the women's reservation law that is expected to come into effect after a few years following the next census.

Here's a look at the success rate of female candidates in the last 35 years.

The share of women candidates, along with the number of female MLAs being elected, has risen over the past the past three decades.

In 1977, only seven women MLAs were elected, out of the 32 who had contested, as per the data available with the Election Commission. In 1980, the number of female contestants came in at 31, whereas, 10 among them were elected.

Also Read: Rajasthan poll: Rahul Gandhi calls PM Modi 'panauti' over World Cup final defeat, BJP leader demands apology

In the 1985 polls, 44 women candidates were in the fray, and 16 among them won. In 1990, the number of female candidates increased to 87, but those winning among them came down to 11.

In 1993, the number of women candidates again went up and stood at 90. However, the success rate dwindled as only nine among them were elected.

In the next Assembly election in 1998, women candidates in the fray came down to 69, but the number of those who won among them increased to 14.

Also Read: Rajasthan Election 2023: Here's what Sachin Pilot thinks Congress needs to introspect on

The year 2003 saw a significant jump in the number of women contestants, at 118. Out of them, however, only 12 were successfully elected.

In the 2008 polls, the number of candidates slightly dropped to 111, but 28 among them won, more than double as compared to the preceding elections.

In the 2013 and 2018 polls, the number of women candidates grew sharply to 151 and 184, respectively. The strike rate, however, did not increase as 27 were elected in 2013 and 24 in the last elections.

The 200 Assembly seats of Rajasthan will be contested in a single-phase poll on November 25. The counting of votes has been scheduled by the Election Commission on December 3.

Milestone Alert!
Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world 🌏 Click here to know more.

Catch all the Elections News, Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
More Less
Updated: 21 Nov 2023, 11:36 PM IST
Next Story footLogo
Recommended For You
Switch to the Mint app for fast and personalized news - Get App