Nitin Nabin Set to be Next BJP National President as Party Notifies Polls

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday issued an official notification for the election of its new national president, with nominations scheduled for Monday and the announcement expected on Tuesday.

According to the notification, nominations can be submitted between 2 pm and 4 pm, followed by scrutiny from 4 pm to 5 pm, and withdrawals permitted from 5 pm to 6 pm. “The election will be held on Tuesday if necessary; otherwise, the announcement will be made the same day,” it stated.

BJP working president Nitin Nabin is widely expected to assume the top post unopposed, succeeding JP Nadda, who became working president in 2019 and national president in January 2020. On December 14, the party appointed five-term legislator and Bihar minister Nabin as the working national president.

As per the BJP’s Constitution, the national president is elected by an electoral college comprising national council members and state council members. Any 20 members of a state’s electoral college can jointly nominate a candidate who has been active for at least four terms and 15 years, with the proposal supported by members from at least five states where national council elections have been completed. A party president can serve a maximum of two consecutive three-year terms.

JP Nadda had been proposed in 2021 by senior leaders Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, and Nitin Gadkari, all former party presidents, and seconded by national council members. His appointment as working president followed Shah’s Cabinet induction as Union Home Minister, marking the first instance of a working president in BJP history.

The incoming president and team will oversee key upcoming elections in five states and a Union Territory — West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, and Puducherry. The BJP currently governs only Assam among these regions. In 2027, the party will contest elections in Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Punjab, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Gujarat. Of these, the BJP is in power in four states, Manipur is under President’s Rule, and Punjab and Himachal are governed by the AAP and Congress, respectively.