Representative image of a person's finger being inked after voting.
Credit: PTI Photo
The biggest electoral exercise in the world—the Lok Sabha elections—are scheduled to begin from April 19 across the country.
Elections will be carried out in seven phases, with the last phase being on June 1. Results will be declared on June 4.
As soon as the counting begins, attention will go towards the bellwether seats in order to estimate the overall results.
What is a bellwether?
A bellwether is a particular event or trend that shows how a more general situation will develop.
What are bellwether seats?
In political terms, a bellwether seat is the constituency that acts as a trend indicator of the entire geographical location. Such seats predict the electoral mood of the state and can often predict which party or alliance will form the government.
What is an example of a bellweather seat?
Gujarat's Valsad Lok Sabha constituency (which was formerly known as Bulsar Lok Sabha constituency) can be a great example of a bellweather seat. From 1957 to 2019, whichever party's candidate has won this seat, that party has been in power at the Centre.