1971 Indian general election

1971 Indian general election

1–10 March 1971

518 of the 521 seats in the Lok Sabha
260 seats needed for a majority
Registered274,189,132
Turnout55.27% ( 5.77pp)
  First party Second party
 
Leader Indira Gandhi Puchalapalli Sundarayya
Party INC(R) CPI(M)
Last election 40.78%, 283 seats 4.28%, 12 seats
Seats won 352 25
Seat change 69 6
Popular vote 64,033,274 7,510,089
Percentage 43.68% 5.12%
Swing 2.90pp 0.84pp

  Third party Fourth party
 
Leader Atal Bihari Vajpayee K. Kamaraj
Party ABJS INC(O)
Alliance Grand Alliance Grand Alliance
Last election 9.31%, 35 seats
Seats won 22 16
Seat change 13 New
Popular vote 10,777,119 15,285,851
Percentage 7.35% 10.43%
Swing 1.96 pp New

Results by constituency

Prime Minister before election

Indira Gandhi
INC(R)

Prime Minister after election

Indira Gandhi
INC(R)

General elections were held in India between 1 and 10 March 1971 to elect members of the fifth Lok Sabha. They were the fifth general elections since independence in 1947. Members were elected from 518 single-seat constituencies. Under the leadership of Indira Gandhi, the Indian National Congress (R) led a campaign which focused on reducing poverty and won a landslide victory, overcoming a split in the party and regaining many of the seats lost in the previous election.