Short answers, pulled from the story.
More than 968 million people out of a population of 1.4 billion were eligible to vote in the 2024 Indian general election. This figure represented 70 percent of the total population and marked an increase of about 150 million voters compared to the 2019 election.
Voting took place across seven phases from the 19th of April to the 1st of June 2024 to elect all 543 members of the Lok Sabha. Votes were counted and the result was declared on the 4th of June to form the 18th Lok Sabha.
The Bharatiya Janata Party won 240 seats down from the 303 it secured in 2019 but lost its singular majority in the Lok Sabha. The National Democratic Alliance overall secured 293 of the house's 543 seats while the INDIA coalition secured 234 seats including 99 won by Congress.
Unemployment became a central issue during the campaign as youth unemployment reached 23.2 percent according to a 2022 World Bank report. The consecration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya created new political dynamics with Hindu nationalist sentiments dominating the sphere.
Six hundred forty-two million voters participated in the election, with 312 million of these being women. This high female participation rate set a new record for any single election in history.