India’s General Election

       What to Know ？？Why the Vote Takes So Long ？？Modi’s Brand of Welfare ？？Opposition Finds Momentum ？？Rahul Gandhi’s Challenge

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       Millions of Indians Living Abroad Have a Say in the Election, Even if They Can’t Vote

       The number of Indians abroad is small relative to the country’s population. Indian political parties want their support anyway.

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       Performers outside of a rally for Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Sydney, Australia last year.Credit...Matthew Abbott for The New York Times

       By John Yoon

       May 30, 2024Updated 9:19 a.m. ET

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       The dishes at a community center potluck for Indian expatriates near Washington, D.C., ranged from chana masala, a popular northern Indian chickpea curry, to idli, a southern Indian rice cake.

       The guests’ views on India’s general election were equally varied. Some praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s economic achievements. Supporters of candidates challenging Mr. Modi’s party criticized what they saw as his disregard for minorities and democratic norms.

       “What is the vision for India in 2024?” the host, Somu Kumar, a manager at a cloud computing company, said recently of that winter potluck. “That gets a lot of people excited to talk.”

       India’s 35 million-member diaspora, roughly equivalent in population to Delhi’s metropolitan area, represents a tiny minority compared with the nearly one billion people who are eligible to take part in a six-week voting process that ends on Saturday. Expatriate Indians also cannot cast absentee ballots under India’s electoral laws.

       But the diaspora is heavily courted by India’s main political parties. Many of its members are from the country’s political and business elites, and voters back home want to know what they think.

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       A gathering of Modi supporters at Times Square in New York City last month.Credit...Overseas Friends of BJP-USA

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       John Yoon is a Times reporter based in Seoul who covers breaking and trending news. More about John Yoon

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