Kolkata: Participation of women candidates in the Bengal assembly election has risen, with 385 women in the fray this time against 240 in 2021, according to reports compiled by the Association for Democratic Rights (ADR) and West Bengal Election Watch (WBEW). Trinamool led among major parties with 55 woman candidates, followed by Congress with 44.The ADR and WBEW reports showed that a total of 385 women are contesting the 2026 election. Of them, 167 women candidates will contest in the first phase and 218 in the second phase. A total of 2,920 candidates are contesting the polls across the two phases, with the first phase being on April 23.In the 2021 assembly polls, there were 240 female contestants out of 2,130 candidates. While the number of women candidates has increased by 154 in 2026, the total number of contestants has also risen. The share of female candidates increased to 13% in 2026 from 11% in 2021.Among major political parties, Trinamool has fielded 55 female candidates. Congress has fielded 44; Left Front and allies have fielded 35, and BJP has fielded 33.According to Election Commission data, there were nearly 3.7 crore woman voters in the state in Jan 2025, nearly half of the total electorate. After the special intensive revision (SIR), the gender ratio for woman voters was likely to drop from 969 in 2025 to 964 in 2026.According to Ujjaini Halim, state coordinator of ADR and WBEW, the increase seemed nominal when the Parliament was trying to propose 33% reservation for women in the legislative bodies. “We don’t need an act to increase the participation of women and their presence as candidates. The political parties have to come forward and increase the presence of women across the parties. It is surprising that almost half of the electorate is being represented by 13% people in the legislative bodies,” she said.The combined report for the two phases also showed that while the total number of candidates aged between 25 years and 40 years has increased in 2026, it has reduced as a share when compared with the rise in overall contestants. A total of 854 (29%) candidates aged between 25 and 40 are contesting in 2026. In 2021, 660 (31%) candidates in the same age bracket had contested.In the 2026 assembly election, 1,567 (53%) candidates aged between 41 and 60 are in the fray while 1,110 (52%) candidates in the same group contested in 2021. A total of 495 senior citizens are contesting in 2026 compared to 359 in 2021.
