After Poll Roll Revision, 'Gen Z' Voters Hold Key In Bihar's Nawada District

A total of 95,959 voters in Bihar's Nawada have been removed in the final list published by the Election Commission (EC) following the special intensive revision (SIR) exercise. The EC also added at least 30,491 voters in this district - known as a key battleground region, and one where all the contesting alliances want to win.

The voter list released by the Nawada district magistrate and district election officer Ravi Prakash under the SIR exercise indicates Gen Z or young voters will emerge as the biggest factor in the assembly election in all the constituencies of Nawada.

There are 3.64 lakh Gen Z voters between 18 and 30 years old in Nawada out of a total 17.16 lakh voters. Most of them would be first-time voters. Analysts say their thinking and decisions are more easily influenced by social media, the internet and new-age issues.

While traditional vote banks have been decisive in elections, the appearance of a large number of Gen Z voters has brought both challenges and opportunities for candidates in Nawada.

Gen Z voters are more vocal about development, employment, education and digital facilities. Their activism on social media can improve or spoil a candidate's image.

District Election Officer Ravi Prakash said the SIR exercise began on June 25. The first list published on August 1 removed at least 1.26 lakh voters. They included people who have passed away, shifted to another state, and who have dual voter identity cards.

The August 1 data showed 52,286 voters had died, 45,258 had shifted to other places, and 9,439 voters could not be found. At the same time, 19,467 voters entered the voter list.

The process of claims, objections and appeals continued till September 1, and 95,959 names did not appear in the final list for Nawada district.

Data from January 2025 shows there were 17.94 lakh voters in Nawada, out of which 9.33 were male and 8.60 lakh were female. Before the SIR exercise began, the number of voters in Nawada increased to 18.12 lakh with 9.42 lakh male and 8.69 lakh female voters.

This shows the 36-day SIR exercise removed 1.26 lakh voters in Nawada.