February 19, 2025: Former Haryana Chief Secretary Vivek Joshi officially took charge as an Election Commissioner on Wednesday, becoming one of the youngest members to join the Election Commission of India at the age of 58.

Joshi, a 1989-batch IAS officer from the Haryana cadre, brings extensive administrative experience to the poll panel. He has previously served as the Secretary in the Department of Personnel and Training and the Department of Financial Services at the central level. He also held the post of Registrar General and Census Commissioner and was a member secretary of the Fifth State Finance Commission of Haryana.

A native of Uttar Pradesh, Joshi holds a mechanical engineering degree from IIT-Roorkee, a Master’s in International Business from IIFT-New Delhi, and an MA and Ph.D. in International Economics from the Graduate Institute, Geneva.

As per the law governing the tenure of election commissioners, they serve a term of six years or until the age of 65, whichever comes earlier. Joshi, born on May 21, 1966, will turn 65 in May 2031, but his term will conclude on February 18 of that year.

With the current Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar set to retire on January 26, 2029, and the other Election Commissioner, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, scheduled to step down in July 2028, Joshi could likely be in line to oversee the 2029 Lok Sabha elections as the next CEC.

His appointment is expected to strengthen the Election Commission with his vast administrative and governance experience.