Across alliances, scions fare well in Bihar Assembly elections

With the NDA’s comfortable win and Mahagathbandhan’s rout, one thread binds both camps together despite the electoral divide: Bihar 2025 has been an election fought, and largely decided, on the shoulders of political families. The two alliances may stand on opposite sides of the mandate today, but through the campaign they marched in lockstep on one front, a sweeping dependence on heirs, spouses and relatives to hold their turf.

Across the state, sons of former ministers, daughters of strongmen, spouses of former MPs and grandchildren of political stalwarts crowded the ballot, making this one of the most dynasty-heavy contests Bihar has witnessed. The NDA may have the numbers tonight, but the broader picture is unmistakable: legacy politics has dominated this election from start to finish.

The ruling alliance’s candidate list read like a roll call of familiar surnames. From Aurangabad Sadar, where former MP Gopal Narayan Singh’s son Trivikram Narayan Singh is in the lead, to Bankipur with Nitin Nabin, Digha with Sanjeev Chaurasia and Tarapur with Samrat Choudhary, the NDA leaned unapologetically on legacy.

Jitan Ram Manjhi set the sharpest example, handing four of his six NDA seats to close relatives, including daughter-in-law Deepa Manjhi in Imamganj and niece Jyoti Devi in Barachatti. Upendra Kushwaha followed suit by fielding his wife Snehlata Kushwaha from Sasaram.

The NDA’s gains across caste-clustered belts show how deeply intertwined family networks remain with organisational muscle. Voters may have expressed fatigue with anti-incumbency, but they did not turn away from familiar surnames.

The Opposition bloc, despite showcasing similar dynastic saturation, struggled to convert lineage into votes. Tejashwi Prasad Yadav held ground in Raghopur, but the wider spread of heirs, Osama Shahab in Raghunathpur, Faraz Fatmi in Keoti, Rahul Sharma in Jehanabad, Navneet Jha in Sheohar, failed to generate a uniform swing.

The Congress and Left parties also leaned heavily on political inheritance. Yet the Mahagathbandhan’s backend coordination never matched the NDA’s delivery machinery, leaving several star heirs unable to cross the finish line.

Bihar’s 2025 map, as it stands tonight, signals continuity rather than churn. The NDA emerged victorious but it does not reflect a rejection of family-based politics. If anything, the results underscore how dynasty remains a cross-party instrument, a tool of convenience for alliances seeking quick recall, assured loyalty and readymade networks.