What is preferential voting in Rajya Sabha election and how is it done?

Voting for the 16 Rajya Sabha seats of Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Haryana and Karnataka will begin shortly. While Lok Sabha members are elected by direct voting of public during General Elections, the voting in the Rajya Sabha follows a different pattern. Here it is based on preferential voting.

In the preferential voting of the Rajya Sabha elections, all the MLAs decide the preference in favour of the candidate of their choice on the ballot paper. The number of candidates in the Rajya Sabha elections can be given as much preference from their side. But it will depend on the MLA whether he should give preference to someone else after the mandatory first preference.

Read | Rajya Sabha Election 2022 LIVE: Voting in 16 seats to begin shortly, interesting battle ahead

For example, there are 7 candidates for a total of 6 seats in Maharashtra, so the MLA will have the option of giving 7 preferences. But it will depend on the MLA whether he should give preference to someone else after the mandatory first preference.

First preference is mandatory for MLA, rest are optional

According to the rules, it is mandatory for voters, that is MLAs to give first preference, the rest preferences are optional. If the first preference is not given by the MLA, then the ballot paper will be considered invalid.

Apart from this, the first preference can be given in favour of only one candidate, if given in favour of more than one candidate then the ballot paper will be considered invalid. Other than that, the marking of preference has to be done through numbers and not in words.

Preference on the ballot paper will have to be given through numericals like 1, 2, 3, 4. If preference is given through words, the ballot paper will stand cancelled. But if the first preference is given in numbers and the rest in words, then the first preference will be counted and the rest will not be counted.