Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s brand of Hindu nationalism will likely be bolstered Monday when the country holds an election to decide its next president.

The position will be voted on by an electoral college comprising members of both Houses of Parliament and state legislators. Because of the domination of national and state lawmakers by Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the election of its chosen candidate is expected to be a mere formality.

In a surprise move last month, the BJP announced it had nominated Ram Nath Kovind, a 71-year-old former governor of the state of Bihar. The previously unheralded figure is all but certain to beat the opposition candidate Meira Kumar, the first female speaker of India’s lower house of parliament. Full Story

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