The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar is ahead of its rivals in more than half of the state’s 243 assembly seats, according the trends from C Voter. The Election Commission of India (ECI), meanwhile, said the counting of votes will continue till late tonight.

At a press conference, the commission officials said that over one crore votes have been counted so far.

“Counting will take extra time due to 63 per cent more Electronic Voting Macines (EVMs) than 2015 Bihar polls as Covid-19 protocol needed additional polling booths,” the ECI officials said.

They also said that it has been glitch-free counting process so far.

The BJP appears set to outperform its senior alliance partner JD(U), as it has been leading in 73 of the 110 seats it contested. The JD(U) is ahead in 42 of the 115 it contested in the Bihar Assembly election.

Bihar BJP spokesman Sanjay Singh Tiger said that the NDA has worked under the “double engine” governments – at the Centre as well in the state – and the people of Bihar have blessed it.

“The people know Prime Minister Narendra Modi and chief minister Nitish kumar can speed up development of the state and hence they have reposed their faith in the NDA,” Tiger told reporters.

Bihar JD(U) president Vasistha Narayan Singh said they were confident since the beginning that the people of the state would like the ruling coalition to continue and expedite the development process.

The counting of votes began at 8 am for 243 member assembly seats on Tuesday. Elections for the 243-assembly seats were held in three phases – October 28, November 3 and November 7.

In Bihar, Nitish Kumar-led NDA is facing competition from the Tejashwi Yadav-led grand alliance.