Bihar Assembly polls: Election commission to introduce color photos, larger fonts on EVM ballot papers

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced significant changes in the design and printing of electronic voting machine (EVM) ballot papers to make them clearer and more voter-friendly, starting with the Bihar Assembly elections scheduled in October-November 2025.

The ECI in its issued guidelines said that color photographs will now be displayed on the EVM ballot papers on September 17, news agency PTI reported.

This marks a departure from the current practice of black and white images, introduced in 2015, which many voters found difficult to recognize.

“From now on, the photographs of the candidates will be printed in color on the EVM ballot paper. The face of the candidate will occupy three-quarters of the photo space for better visibility,” specifies the commission.

The election authority also outlined changes to how names and numbers will appear on ballot papers.

Candidate serial numbers and None of the Above (NOTA) option will be printed in international form of Indian numerals as per PTI.

To improve clarity, the EC has confirmed that the font size will be 30 and bold.

The ECI statement also said that the EVM ballot papers will be printed on 70 GSM paper for durability. For the parliamentary elections, pink colored sheets with the specified “RGB values” will be used.