Nitish Kumar re-elected as Janata Dal United president

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday re-elected as the national president of the Janata Dal (United). This comes days after he was elected to the Rajya Sabha. With no other nominations filed, Nitish Kumar was elected unopposed after the withdrawal deadline concluded. The nomination process had earlier seen JD(U) Working President Sanjay Kumar Jha and several senior leaders backing Kumar’s candidature by filing his nomination papers at the party’s New Delhi office on March 19. 
The deadline for filing nominations was March 22, and in the absence of any challengers, the scheduled election on March 27 became unnecessary. The JD(U), formed in 2003 with the involvement of George Fernandes, initially had him as its first National President. He was later succeeded by Sharad Yadav, who led the party for several terms before internal differences led to a leadership shift.
Nitish Kumar first assumed the presidency in 2016 after Sharad Yadav’s exit. He was re-elected in 2019 but stepped down in 2020, appointing RCP Singh as his successor. Subsequently, Rajiv Ranjan Singh took over the role in 2021. However, ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Nitish Kumar reassumed the party’s top position on December 29, 2023. Notably, the CM’s son, Nishant Kumar, has recently joined the party and is expected to play an important role in the organisation.