Parliament to elect new Vice President on September 9: Who are the likely frontrunners?

Dhankhar resigned with immediate effect on Monday, citing health grounds

The Election Commission on Friday announced the schedule for the election of the next Vice President.

The last date for filing the nomination is August 21 and the counting of votes will take place on September 9.

The election was necessitated after the resignation of incumbent Jagdeep Dhankhar on July 22.

Dhankhar (74) assumed office in August 2022. His five-year term would end in August 2027.  "To prioritise health care and abide by medical advice, I hereby resign as the Vice President of India, effective immediately, in accordance with Article 67(a) of the constitution," Dhankhar's resignation letter read.

Under Article 68(2) of the Constitution, an election to fill a vacancy in the office of the Vice President due to resignation must be held “as soon as possible” after it becomes vacant. The person elected will serve a full five-year term from the date of assuming office.

Here are some likely contenders for the post. 

Harivansh Narayan Singh

Among the frontrunners from the NDA camp is Harivansh Narayan Singh, a Janata Dal (United) MP who has been the Rajya Sabha deputy chairman since 2020. He has been temporarily filling the role of Rajya Sabha chair until the election of the next Vice President of India.

Nitish Kumar

According  to a report by News18, from Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, several names are being circulated on social media.

“Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is set to become the next Vice President of the country. In Bihar, the BJP will appoint its own Chief Minister for the elections. The JDU will have the Deputy Chief Minister. Nitish’s son Nishant may be appointed as the Deputy Chief Minister," political journalist Sameer Chougaonkar posted on X.

Ram Nath Thakur

Minister of State for Agriculture and son of former Bihar chief minister Bharat Ratna Karpoori Thakur is also being seen as a frontrunner.

According to reports, BJP chief JP Nadda is believed to have met Thakur two days after Dhankhar quit.

Thakur belongs to the Nai (barber) community. It falls under the "ati-pichhara" category. If he is picked, it would probably be a strategic move ahead of upcoming elections in Bihar.

 Shashi Tharoor

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor’s name is also being circulated.  Tharoor’s proximity with the Narendra Modi government, especially after he was part of the government’s outreach programme on Operation Sindoor, recently widened his rift with the Congress.

Tharoor will have to leave his Lok Sabha MP seat to be a Vice-President.

The current combined strength of the two Houses stands at 786, factoring in six vacancies -one in Lok Sabha (Basirhat, West Bengal) and five in Rajya Sabha (four from Jammu and Kashmir and one from Punjab, where AAP MP Sanjeev Arora stepped down after winning a recently held  state assembly bypoll.