In a big shift from the razor-thin margins of the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) delivered a decisive blow to the opposition Mahagathbandhan (MGB) in 2025. The NDA, led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, clinched 202 out of the 243 seats in the state legislature, securing a comfortable majority. On the other hand, the MGB, once the dominant alliance, suffered a sharp decline in its seat share. While the NDA’s performance was impressive, particularly with the BJP emerging as the largest party with 89 seats, the vote share picture tells a different story. This year’s results show significant seat losses for several parties compared to the 2020 elections, including a major setback for Tejashwi Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), which saw its tally plummet.
NDA's stellar performance in 2025
In 2020, the NDA’s victory was a narrow one, securing 125 seats with just a three-seat cushion above the majority mark. The result came after one of the closest elections in Bihar's recent history, with the alliance edging out the MGB by a slim 15-seat margin. This year, however, the NDA surged, winning 202 seats, an impressive leap from its 2020 performance.
The BJP, while not leading in terms of vote share, became the largest party with 89 seats, a significant gain over its 74-seat performance in 2020. Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) also made modest gains, securing 85 seats in 2025 compared to 43 seats in 2020. However, the real surprise came from Chirag Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), which delivered a stellar performance, securing 19 seats, far exceeding expectations from its 2020 showing.
RJD’s huge decline
The biggest loser in these elections was undoubtedly the RJD, which saw its seat share drastically reduced from 75 seats in 2020 to just 25 seats in 2025. Despite maintaining the highest vote share, 23%, Tejashwi Yadav’s party failed to convert this support into a significant number of seats. Many of RJD’s strongholds, particularly in rural Bihar, flipped in favor of the NDA, indicating shifting political dynamics.
The Congress, which had secured 19 seats in 2020 as part of the MGB, continued its downward spiral, securing just 6 seats in 2025. Its vote share also plummeted Other smaller parties like the CPI(ML) and AIMIM retained their minimal presence, but didn’t see major shifts in their standings.
Breaking down the seat and vote share comparison
| Party | Seats in 2020 | Seats in 2025 | Change in seats | Vote share in 2020 | Vote share in 2025 | Change in vote share |
| BJP | 74 | 89 | +15 | 19.46% | 20.8% | +1.34% |
| JD(U) | 43 | 85 | +42 | 15.39% | 19.25% | +3.86% |
| RJD | 75 | 25 | -50 | 23.11% | 23% | -0.11% |
| LJP(RV) | 0 | 19 | +19 | 0% | 4.97% | +4.97% |
| Congress | 19 | 6 | -13 | 9.48% | 8.71% | -0.77% |
| AIMIM | 5 | 5 | 0 | N/A | 2.04% | N/A |
| CPI(ML)(L | 9 | 2 | -7 | 2.84% | 2.84% | 0% |
| Others | 15 | 17 | +2 | - | - | - |
