On Thursday, the counting of ballots cast in six assembly by-elections held in five different states, including Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, and a Lok Sabha election. While the patterns in Himachal were erratic, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was comfortably in the lead.
Exit polls in Gujarat, where the BJP has been in power since 1998 and has not lost an election since 1995, predicted a resounding victory for the party. From 2001 to 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the governor of Gujarat.
Gujarat’s 2022 elections will feature a three-corner race for the first time in at least 30 years thanks to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAPattempts )’s to gain ground there. According to opinion polls, AAP was probably split between the Congress and the BJP in Gujarat, the main opposition party. AAP was anticipated to help the BJP, which won 99 seats in 2017, its lowest number ever.
The results of the Gujarat elections will determine if AAP remains relevant on a national level and whether the BJP can overcome incumbent bias and seize control of the country. They appear to support Congress’ ongoing battle for relevance.
Exit polls suggested the AAP would garner enough support to become a national party. Despite the Bharatiya BJP’s strong campaigning, the AAP’s victory in the Delhi civic elections on Wednesday was a significant boost for the party.
Since retaking control of Delhi, the AAP has worked to increase its influence across the country. In the 2020 election, they won 62 seats out of the assembly’s 70 seats. When it surged to victory in Punjab this year, it made history by becoming the first regional party to hold administrations in two states.
The AAP wants to significantly expand its presence in Gujarat. When elections are scheduled for Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, and Telangana in 2023, it is anticipated that it would run in more elections.
The victory in the MCD elections and the party’s respectable showing in Gujarat are anticipated to strengthen AAP’s standing as a viable national alternative.
It was anticipated that the outcomes in Himachal Pradesh would be significantly closer. As chief minister Jairam Thakur attempts to end a 30-year trend of losing the assembly elections, exit polls indicated a tight race.
The Congress ran for office in Himachal on pledges that included the restoration of the previous pension plan, gas subsidies, and protection against growing inflation. The BJP won 44 of the 68 assembly seats in the 2017 elections, while the Congress took home 21.
The BJP and the Congress, which ran in its first election without veteran Virbhadra Singh, squared off in the Himalayan state.
The Mainpuri Lok Sabha by-election vote count was also in progress. Mulayam Singh Yadav, the founder of the Samajwadi Party (SP) and a former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, required the by-election. The Yadav family has owned Mainpuri as a small borough. The SP chose to run Raghuraj Singh Shakya of the BJP against Yadav’s daughter-in-law, Dimple Yadav.
Elections for the Rampur Sadar and Khatauli assembly seats were also held. A prestige contest between the BJP and the SP took place in the Rampur Sadar by-election. It was necessary due to SP leader Azam Khan’s disqualification.
Since Janata Dal (United) broke off its alliance with the BJP to form the government with Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), the Congress, and the Left parties, the Kurhani by-election in Bihar was the first. RJD wants to hold onto the seat.
In addition, by-elections were held for the assembly seats in the Indian states of Rajasthan’s Sardarshahar, Odisha’s Padampur, and Chhattisgarh’s Bhanupratappur.
