Timing of Vice-Presidential Elections and Five-Year Casual Term
Official heading: “Time of holding election to fill vacancy in the office of Vice-President and the term of office of person elected to fill casual vacancy”
- Source edition
- The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)
- Source locator
- Part V, Article 68, printed page 31
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1. In One Sentence
Article 68 requires regular vice-presidential elections to be completed before the incumbent’s term expires, and directs casual vacancy elections to be held as soon as possible for a full five-year term.
2. What It Means in Everyday Language
Article 68 governs the timing of elections to the office of Vice-President. Clause (1) requires that an election to fill a vacancy caused by the expiration of the five-year term must be completed before that term expires.
Clause (2) addresses casual vacancies caused by death, resignation, or removal. Such elections must be held "as soon as possible" after the occurrence of the vacancy. Unlike Article 62 for the President, no rigid six-month deadline is textually stated, though prompt election is constitutionally expected.
The person elected to fill a casual vacancy enters upon office for a full five-year term from the date of assumption, rather than merely completing the residual period of their predecessor.
3. Practical Illustrative Example
A sitting Vice-President resigns three years into their term after being elected to the presidency.
4. Important Limits, Qualifications & Exceptions
Article 68 regulates election deadlines and terms for vice-presidential transitions.
- Expiration vacancy: Election must be completed before the sitting Vice-President’s term ends.
- Casual vacancy: Election must be conducted as soon as possible after occurrence.
- Fresh 5-year tenure: Incoming successor serves a full term under Article 67.
- Protects against truncation of constitutional tenure for newly elected officials.
5. Operative Constitutional Text
6. Sources & Historical Assembly Deliberations
Assembly quotations are withheld until wording, dates, and attribution have been checked against the primary record.
- •Government of India (Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice) • Part V, Article 68, printed page 31 • Human source-link check pending
Primary PDF accessed and transcribed with AI assistance on 14 October 2026. Formatting and amendment annotation markers are omitted; operative wording is retained. This is not human legal review. Later amendments and commencement notifications have not been comprehensively checked.