India elections 2024: 280 MPs elected for first time

As the India elections are over, the 18th Lok Sabha (lower house of parliament) in the country will include approximately 280 MPs elected for the first time, up from 267 first-time MPs in the 2019 elections.

A total of 263 newly elected MPs have previously served as members of Lok Sabha. Additionally, 16 MPs have been members of Rajya Sabha, and one MP has served seven terms in Lok Sabha, according to think-tank PRS Legislative Research.

Among the re-elected MPs, eight changed their constituency, and one was re-elected from two constituencies.

Nine re-elected MPs represented a different party in the 17th Lok Sabha, while eight others represented a party that split from their earlier party.

Out of the 53 ministers who contested, 35 have won.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is the largest party in the new Lok Sabha with 240 seats. The next largest party is the Indian National Congress (INC) with 99 seats, followed by the Samajwadi Party with 37 seats.

The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) named Narendra Modi as its leader for a third consecutive term on Wednesday, a day after regaining power with a slim majority in the elections.

The NDA won 293 seats in the 543-member lower house of parliament, more than the 272 needed to form a government.

Modi, who has led Indian politics since 2014, will head a government reliant on regional allies, whose support has varied, potentially complicating the new cabinet’s reform plans.