National Democratic Alliance (NDA) nominee CP Radhakrishnan has been elected as the 15th Vice President of India, securing a decisive win over joint Opposition candidate and former Supreme Court judge B Sudershan Reddy. Radhakrishnan bagged 452 votes, while Reddy received 300 votes, giving the NDA candidate a winning margin of 152 votes.

The high-stakes election took place on Tuesday, with voting beginning at 10 am and concluding at 5 pm in Parliament. Counting began soon after, sealing Radhakrishnan’s victory. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the first to cast his vote, followed by several Union Ministers including Kiren Rijiju, Arjun Ram Meghwal, Jitendra Singh, and L Murugan.

Radhakrishnan enjoyed broad support from the BJP, TDP, JD(U), Shiv Sena, NCP, AGP, LJP (Ram Vilas), RLD, JDS, AIADMK, and YSRCP. Meanwhile, Reddy was backed by the Congress, DMK, SP, TMC, JMM, AAP, RJD, Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP (SP), and Left parties.

However, key players such as the BJD, BRS, and SAD abstained from voting. Analysts had projected Radhakrishnan to secure around 437 votes, but his final tally of 452 underscored a stronger-than-expected show of unity within the NDA ranks and its allies.