Votes, Parties, and Seats

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This timely and insightful book delves into the complexities of the largest electoral event in the world's largest democracy. Drawing from his political background, the author passionately explores the intricacies of India's elections, meticulously analyzing data and events. The work offers a quantitative examination of eight elections, revealing voting patterns and detailing results for every candidate across all constituencies in Lok Sabha elections from 1962 to 2014. The primary aim is to elucidate the concept of 'electoral efficiency,' which measures a party's ability to translate votes into parliamentary seats. India's parliamentary elections, along with state assembly elections, utilize the First Past the Post (FPTP) system, where a single representative is elected from each of the 543 constituencies based on the highest vote count. This book serves as a comprehensive study of parliamentary general election results in India, providing critical insights into the varying efficiency of political parties in converting votes into seats.