Electing a Rajya Sabha member: The rules, process, and politics, Pg14

Key Highlights:

• Elections for 37 Rajya Sabha MPs from 10 states are scheduled for March 16.
• Rajya Sabha members are elected by state Assembly members.
• Nitish Kumar, former Bihar CM, is a prominent contestant in the upcoming elections.
• The minimum age to be a Rajya Sabha MP is 30 years.
• Rajya Sabha is a permanent body with members serving a term of six years, with one-third retiring every two years.

Detailed Insights:

• Rajya Sabha, the Council of States, can have a maximum of 250 members, with 12 nominated by the President for expertise in specific fields.
• Unlike the Lok Sabha, whose members are directly elected by citizens, Rajya Sabha MPs are elected through proportional representation by a single transferable vote by state MLAs.
• The election process begins with the President issuing notifications based on the Election Commission's recommendations, calling upon elected members of the Legislative Assembly to elect members.
• A formula is used to determine the number of votes needed to win, calculated by dividing the total number of MLAs by the number of seats plus one, then adding one to the result.
• The single transferable vote system allows MLAs to mark preferences, and surplus votes of winning candidates are transferred to second preference candidates.
• Union Territories like Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, Chandigarh, and Ladakh do not have representation in Rajya Sabha.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Proportional Representation: An electoral system in which parties gain seats in proportion to the number of votes cast for them.
• Single Transferable Vote: A voting system designed to achieve proportional representation through ranked voting.
• Electoral College: A body of people representing the states of a country, who formally cast votes for the election of the president.