2018 elections in India

Elections in the Republic of India in 2018 include by-elections to the Lok Sabha, elections to the Rajya Sabha, elections to legislative assemblies of eight states and numerous other by-elections to state legislative assemblies, councils and local bodies.

The elections are widely considered crucial to the ruling National Democratic Alliance and the opposition United Progressive Alliance in lieu of the upcoming general elections in 2019. In seven of the eight states that go to polls this year, the Bharatiya Janata Party is in direct contest with the Indian National Congress. Further, the election results .[1] in the states of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan are considered a barometer of the pulse of the public before the general elections. Elections to the upper house where the ruling National Democratic Alliance does not command a majority are expected to strengthen its position.

Background

Political System

According to the Constitution of India, elections should take place to the parliament and state legislative assemblies every five years, unless an emergency is under operation. Further, any vacancy caused by death or resignation must be filled through an election within six months of occurrence of such vacancy. The elections to the lower houses (in Parliament and in the states) use first past the post system - the candidate with a plurality of the votes wins the election.

Elections to one-third of the seats of the upper house of the Parliament - the Rajya Sabha are conducted every two years. The members of the upper house are elected indirectly by the state legislative assemblies on the basis of proportional representation. Members to the state legislative councils (in states which have an upper house) are elected indirectly through local bodies.

All the elections at the central and state level are conducted by the Election Commission of India while local body elections are conducted by state election commissions.[2]

Naga Peace Process

Elections are scheduled to take place in the state of Nagaland, which has a long running insurgency against the Indian state. The Nagaland peace accord signed by the Government of India and a faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland is a major factor in the elections. The insurgent groups have threatened to disrupt the state elections unless a permanent solution is found to the conflict. However, negotiations between the insurgent groups and the government with a commitment that the elections will not have any bearing upon the peace process pacified the insurgents and elections are being held without any disruption.[3]

Parliament of India

By-elections to the Lok Sabha

January

2018 Winner 2014 Winner State Constituency
INC BJP Rajasthan Alwar
INC BJP Rajasthan Ajmer
TMC TMC West Bengal Uluberia


  • Alwar (Lok Sabha constituency): Elections were held on 29 January to elect a new member of parliament after the death of the incumbent Mahant Chandnath of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Both the Bharatiya Janata Party and Indian National Congress fielded candidates from the yadav community. 61.77% of the total 18,27,936 voters participated in the election.[4] For the first time in the country, election commission has placed candidates' photos next to their name to help voters identify the candidates. In what was seen as a body blow to the state government, the INC wrested control of the seat from the BJP, with its candidate Karan Singh Yadav winning the seat by a margin of 1,96,496 votes.[5][6]
  • Ajmer (Lok Sabha constituency): Elections were held on 29 January to elect a new member of parliament after the death of the incumbent Sanwar Lal Jat of the Bharatiya Janata Party. 65% of the total 18.43 lakh voters participated in the election.[4] For the first time in the country, the election commission has placed candidates' photos next to their name to help voters identify the candidates. In what was seen as a body blow to the state government, the INC wrested control of the seat from the BJP, its candidate Raghu Sharma won by a margin of 84,238 votes.[7]
  • Uluberia (Lok Sabha constituency): Elections were held on 29 January to elect a new member of parliament after the death of Mohammedan Sporting Club's president and All India Trinamool Congress M.P Sultan Ahmed.[8] Trinamool Congress candidate Sajda Ahmed won Uluberia Lok Sabha seat by defeating BJP candidate Anupam Mallick by 4,74,023 votes.[9]

March

2018 Winner 2014 Winner State Constituency Note
SP BJP Uttar Pradesh Gorakhpur Elections were held on March 11 to elect a new member of Parliament after the incumbent member Yogi Adityanath resigned from the post after he was appointed the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.[10][11]
SP BJP Uttar Pradesh Phulpur Elections were held on March 14 to elect a new member of Parliament after the incumbent member Keshav Prasad Maurya resigned from the post after he was appointed the Deputy Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.[10][12]
RJD RJD Bihar Araria The constituency fell vacant after the death of RJD MP Mohammed Taslimuddin.[10]

May

4 parliamentary seats will be contested on 28 May.[13][14] The counting of votes took place on May 31.[13][15] This election saw the ruling BJP party lose their majority in the lower house of the Indian Parliament[16]

2018 Winner 2014 Winner State Constituency Note
RLD BJP Uttar Pradesh Kairana The constituency fell vacant after the death of BJP MP Hukum Singh.
NCP BJP Maharashtra Bhandara-Gondiya Nana Patole quit as the BJP MP and resigned from the ruling party to return to the Congress earlier this year, necessitating the by-election.
BJP BJP Maharashtra Palghar Palghar seat in north Konkan fell vacant after sitting BJP MP Chintaman Vanga died on 30 January following a heart attack.
NDPP NPF Nagaland Nagaland The by-election was necessitated after NDPP's Neiphiu Rio resigned to take on the role of Nagaland chief minister.

Elections to the Rajya Sabha

March

  • Elections to 59 Rajya Sabha seats held on March 23. The results declared on the same day.[17] The Bhartiya Janta Party consolidated its position as the largest party in the Rajya Sabha by winning 28 of the 58 seats in the House. With these results, the BJP-led NDA now has 87 seats in the 245- seat Rajya Sabha compared to the 57 seats of the Congress-led UPA. Other smaller parties together account for the remaining 100 seats.[18]

State Legislatures

Date State Government before Government after Elected leader
18 February 2018 Tripura Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Biplab Kumar Deb
27 February 2018 Meghalaya Indian National Congress(INC) National People's Party (India) (NPP) Conrad Sangma
United Democratic Party (UDP) United Democratic Party (UDP)
27 February 2018 Nagaland Naga People's Front (NPF) Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) Neiphiu Rio
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
12 May 2018 Karnataka Indian National Congress (INC) Janata Dal (Secular) (JD(S)) H. D. Kumaraswamy
Indian National Congress (INC)
12 & 20 November 2018 Chhattisgarh Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
28 November 2018 Madhya Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
28 November 2018 Mizoram Indian National Congress (INC)
7 December 2018 Rajasthan Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
7 December 2018 Telangana Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS)

Tripura

Tripura

Elections were held in Tripura on 18 February 2018 in 59 out of 60 constituencies of the Legislative Assembly.[19] The Left Front led by Manik Sarkar sought re-election, having governed Tripura since the 1998 election. The region in general had been under the political control of the Communist Party for 25 years prior to the election, leading to the region being dubbed a "red holdout".[20] The incumbent Left Front government was defeated after 25 years of office, with the Bharatiya Janata Party and Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura winning a large majority of seats. The Indian National Congress, which was the second largest party in the 2013 election, lost all its seats and most of its vote share.

Parties and coalitions Popular vote Seats
Votes % ±pp Won +/−
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 999,093 43.0 36 Increase36
Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) 992,575 42.7 16 Decrease33
Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura (IPFT) 173,603 7.5 8 Increase8
Indian National Congress (INC) 41,325 1.8 0 Decrease10
Communist Party of India (CPI) 19,352 0.8 0 Decrease1
Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) 17,568 0.8 0 Steady
Indigenous Nationalist Party of Twipra (INPT) 16,255 0.7 0 Steady
All India Forward Bloc (AIFB) 13,115 0.6 0 Steady
All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) 6,989 0.3 0 Steady
Independents (IND) 0 Steady
Other parties and coalitions 0 Steady
None of the Above (NOTA)
Vacant seat 1 Increase1
Total 100.00 60 ±0

Meghalaya

Meghalaya

Elections were held in Meghalaya on 27 February 2018 to elect 59 of 60 members to the Legislative Assembly. The incumbent Indian National Congress government controlled the state in a coalition with smaller parties prior to the election, and sought to retain office. The elections resulted in a hung assembly with no single party or alliance getting the requisite majority of 31 seats in the Vidhan Sabha.[21] Conrad Sangma, leader of the National People's Party, announced that he would form a government with the support of the United Democratic Party and other regional parties.[22][23] He was sworn in as the Chief Minister, along with eleven other ministers.[24]

Party Popular vote Seats
Votes % ±pp Contested Won +/−
Indian National Congress (INC) 447,472 28.5 59 21 Decrease8
National People's Party (NPP) 323,500 20.6 52 19 Increase17
United Democratic Party (UDP) 182,491 11.6 27 6 Decrease2
Independents (IND) 170,249 10.8 3 Decrease10
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 151,217 9.6 47 2 Increase2
People's Democratic Front (PDF) 128,413 8.2 8 4 Increase4
Hill State People's Democratic Party (HSPDP) 84,011 5.3 15 2 Increase1
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) 25,247 1.6 6 1 Decrease1
Garo National Council (GNC) 21,679 1.4 7 0 Decrease1
Khun Hynniewtrep National Awakening Movement (KHNAM) 14,164 0.9 6 1 Increase1
All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) 5,544 0.4 0 Steady
None of the Above (NOTA) 14,631 0.9
Vacant seat 1 Increase1
Total 100.00 29760±0

Nagaland

Nagaland

Elections were held in Nagaland on 27 February 2018 in 59 out of 60 constituencies of the Legislative Assembly. The scheduled election in Northern Angami II constituency did not take place as only incumbent MLA Neiphiu Rio was nominated and was therefore declared elected unopposed.[25][26] The ruling Naga People's Front was challenged by the newly established Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP), an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party. The NDPP and its allies won a majority, with former Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio returning to government.

Parties and coalitions Popular vote Seats
Votes % ±pp Candidates Won +/−
Nagaland People's Front (NPF) 389,912 38.8 58 26 Decrease12
Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) 253,090 25.2 40 18 Increase18
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 153,864 15.3 20 12 Increase11
National People's Party (NPP) 69,506 6.9 25 2 Increase2
Janata Dal (United) (JD(U)) 45,089 4.5 13 1 Steady
Independents (IND) 43,008 4.3 11 1 Decrease7
Indian National Congress (INC) 20,752 2.1 18 0 Decrease8
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) 10,693 1.1 6 0 Decrease4
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) 7,491 0.7 3 0 Steady
Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) 2,765 0.3 2 0 Steady
None of the Above (NOTA)
Total 100.00 196 60 ±0

Karnataka

Karnataka

Elections were held in Karnataka on 12 May 2018 in 222 out of 224 constituencies of the Legislative Assembly. The incumbent Indian National Congress (INC) was seeking re-election, having governed the state since elections in 2013.[27] The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janata Dal (Secular) (JD(S)) sought to regain office. The election led to a hung assembly, with the Bharatiya Janata Party emerging as the single largest party, with 104 seats, but failing to win a majority of seats and popular votes. The Indian National Congress (INC) won the popular vote.[28] Following the election, B. S. Yeddyurappa was appointed Chief Minister and tasked with forming a minority BJP government, but resigned two days later on being unable to prove majority in the assembly. Thereafter the INC and JD(S) which had entered into a post-poll agreement formed a majority coalition government. H.D. Kumaraswamy of Janata Dal (Secular) was subsequently appointed Chief Minister.

Parties and coalitions Popular vote Seats
Votes % ±pp Won +/−
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 1,31,85,384 36.2 Increase16.3 104 Increase64
Indian National Congress (INC) 1,49,32,069 38.0 Increase1.4 80 Decrease44
Janata Dal (Secular) (JDS) 66,66,307 18.3 Decrease1.9 37 Decrease3
Independents (IND) 14,37,045 3.9 Decrease 3.5 1 Decrease8
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) 1,08,592 0.3 1 Increase1
Karnataka Pragnyavantha Janatha Party (KPJP) 74,229 0.2 1 Increase1
Other parties and candidates 6,83,632 2.2 0 Decrease13
None of the Above (NOTA) 3,22,841 0.9
Total 100.00 224 ±0

Future elections

Elections will be held in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram, Rajasthan and Telangana in late 2018.

Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly election, 2018
Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly election, 2018
Mizoram Legislative Assembly election, 2018
Rajasthan Legislative Assembly election, 2018
Telangana Legislative Assembly election, 2018

State Assembly Bypolls

10 assembly seats across 9 different states held bypolls on 28 May 2018. The results of each bypoll were declared on 31 May.

Noorpur (Uttar Pradesh)

Followed the demise of BJP MLA Lokendra Singh Chauhan in a road accident, the Noorpur seat fell vacant. Besides the Kairana Lok Sabha constituency, Noorpur is another assembly seat in which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fought with the Samajwadi Party (SP). Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) didn't participate in the bypolls, and it is still clear that the BSP will lend support to SP. SP Candidate won the seat.

Shahkot (Punjab)

Shahkot constituency in Punjab fell vacant when the sitting Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) MLA Ajit Singh Kohar died of heart failure in February 2018. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which had emerged as the runners-up to Congress in 2017, campaigned aggressively for its candidate Rattan Singh Kakkarkalan.

The AAP campaign, led by AAP MP Bhagwant Mann, was said to have received a lukewarm response. The AAP suffered many a setback in the state after Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal tendered an apology to Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia. Some of the state leaders were disappointed with Kejriwal's decision and switched to either AAP or Congress.

Jokihat (Bihar)

In what is being seen by many as a test of Nitish Kumar's popularity in the state after he walked away from the mahagathbandhan in 2017, the chief minister and half of his cabinet campaigned for Janata Dal United's (JDU) candidate Murshid Alam. Alam has seven criminal cases, including a gangrape case, against him.

JD(U) legislator Sarfaraz Alam had quit the party after Nitish decided to part ways with Lalu's Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), necessitating a by-election to the assembly seat.Later, he became the MP from Araria lok sabha constituency in Bihar through the bypoll held in March 2018.

Gomia and Silli (Jharkhand)

Two assembly seats, Gomia and Silli, in Jharkhand went to polls on 28 May. In Gomia, the ruling National Democratic Alliance partners – the BJP and the All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU) fought separately.

In Silli, there was a direct fight between Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) candidate Seema Mahto and AJSU president Sudesh Mahto. Seema Mahto is the wife of Amit Mahto, who lost his assembly seat after being convicted and awarded a jail term.

Chengannur (Kerala)

Sitting CPI(M) MLA KK Ramachandran Nair's demise necessitated the by-election to the Kerala constituency. Even though a result against the CPI(M)-led Left government will not change the composition of the assembly, the bypoll is being seen as a test of the Pinarayi Vijayan-led government’s two years in power.

Indian National Congress (INC), the main opposition party of Kerala, claims that the mandate will be against the performances of state and central governments.

Chengannur is one of the constituencies in Kerala, where National Democratic Alliance (NDA) got a vote share near 30% in 2016 vidhan sabha elections.Through the bypoll, we can know the present attitude of Keralites towards the central-ruling party.

Out of the whole bypoll constituencies, the highest poll percentage was recorded in Chengannur-76.27%.

Palus-Kadegaon (Maharashtra)

Congress nominee Vishwakeet Kadam's election from Palus-Kadegaon Assembly seat in the by-poll scheduled later this month is a mere formality as the main rival BJP has withdrawn from the race. The by-poll, scheduled on 28 May, was necessitated because of the death of sitting Congress MLA and former minister Patangrao Kadam.

The Congress had fielded his son Vishwajeet Kadam from the seat.

Ampati (Meghalaya)

Ampati is considered to be a Congress stronghold where the party has fielded Mukul Sangma's daughter Miani D Shira against the National People's Party's Clement Momin.

Tharali (Uttarakhand)

Uttarakhand's Tharali seat fell vacant after BJP MLA Maganlal Shah succumbed to swine flu in February 2018. Uttarakhand had voted the BJP to power in the assembly election in 2017.

Maheshtala (West Bengal)

In West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district, the Maheshtala seat fell vacant after the two-time All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Kasturi Das dies in February 2018. The Congress extended support to CPI(M) candidate for the 28 May by-poll to Maheshtala Assembly seat in West Bengal, sparking speculation that the two parties might be coming closer to each other. The two parties had forged a coalition in Bengal for the 2016 assembly elections but parted ways after the CPI(M) central committee said the alliance was “not in consonance with the party line adopted in 2015”.

Results

Constituency State Winner Party Lead Runner up
Noorpur Uttar Pradesh Naimul Hasan SP 6211 BJP
Shahkot Punjab Hardev Singh Ladi Cong 38801 SAD
Jokihat Bihar Shahnawaz Alam RJD 38089 JD(U)
Gomia Jharkhand Babita Devi JMM 1344 JMM
Silli Jharkhand Seema Devi JMM 13561 JMM
Chengannur Kerala Saji Cheriyan CPI(M) 20956 Cong
Palus-Kadegaon Maharashtra Kadam Viswajeet Patangrao Cong No opposition BJP
Ampati Meghalaya Miani D Shira Cong 3191 NPP
Tharali Uttarakhand Munni Devi Shah BJP 1981 Cong
Maheshtala West Bengal Dulal Chandra das AITC 62827 BJP
RR Nagar Karnataka Munirathna Cong 25492 BJP
Jayanagar Karnataka Sowmya Reddy Cong 3300 BJP

Local body elections

Jammu and Kashmir

Panchayat elections and municipal elections will be held in Jammu and Kashmir in 2018 from October 8 until December 11.[29] The last time Panchayat elections were held in the state were in 2011 and the last time municipal elections were held were in 2005.[30][31]

Jammu and Kashmir

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Karnataka Elections Results LIVE Coverage". Karnataka Elections 2018. Retrieved 2018-04-19.
  2. ↑ "Election Commission of India". eci.nic.in. Retrieved 2018-02-12.
  3. ↑ "Nagaland Heads For Elections Under The Shadow Of A Missing "Solution"". NDTV.com. Retrieved 2018-02-12.
  4. 1 2 "Ajmer, Alwar bypolls to be first Lok Sabha elections to feature pictures of candidates on EVMs - Firstpost". www.firstpost.com. Retrieved 2018-02-13.
  5. ↑ "Rajasthan by-election voting percentage: 62% turnout in Alwar, 65% in Ajmer, 77% in Mandalgarh". The PinkCity Post. 2018-01-29. Retrieved 2018-02-13.
  6. ↑ "Rajasthan bypoll results highlights: Blow for BJP as Congress wins Ajmer, Alwar and Mandalgarh bypolls". hindustantimes.com/. 2018-02-01. Retrieved 2018-02-12.
  7. ↑ "Ajmer by-election 2018 final result: Raghu Sharma wins". The PinkCity Post. 2018-02-01. Retrieved 2018-02-13.
  8. ↑ "Bypolls to 3 Lok Sabha seats in Rajasthan, West Bengal on 29 January". livemint. 2017-12-28. Retrieved 2018-03-01.
  9. ↑ "Uluberia Lok Sabha Bye-Election Result: TMC Candidate Sajda Wins Bypoll". india news. 2018-02-01. Retrieved 2018-03-01.
  10. 1 2 3 "Gorakhpur and Phulpur Lok Sabha byelections: BJP hopes to retain seats". Indian Express. 2018-02-15. Retrieved 2018-03-01.
  11. ↑ "Election Results".
  12. ↑ "Election results - Phulpur" (PDF).
  13. 1 2 "Stage set for bypolls to 4 parliamentary, 10 assembly seats - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2018-05-28.
  14. ↑ "By-elections 2018: 4 Lok Sabha, 10 Assembly seats go for polls today; all you need to know about parties, candidates in fray - Firstpost". www.firstpost.com. Retrieved 2018-05-28.
  15. ↑ "Bypolls to 4 Lok Sabha, 10 assembly seats begin as BJP faces united opposition test". hindustantimes.com/. 2018-05-27. Retrieved 2018-05-28.
  16. ↑ https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/05/narendra-modi-bjp-party-suffers-setback-election-180531101148797.html
  17. ↑ Anuja (2018-02-23). "Elections to 59 Rajya Sabha seats to be held on 23 March". livemint.com/. Retrieved 2018-02-24.
  18. ↑ https://www.news18.com/news/politics/bjp-extends-lead-in-rajya-sabha-bags-28-out-of-58-seats-in-polls-1698391.html
  19. ↑ "Tripura Assembly Election 2018 LIVE: 78.56% Turnout Till 9 PM, Left Front's 25-Year-Long Run Faces BJP Challenge". NDTV. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
  20. ↑ "Conquest of Tripura".
  21. ↑ http://indianexpress.com/article/north-east-india/meghalaya/meghalaya-assembly-election-results-2018-live-5084085/
  22. ↑ http://www.financialexpress.com/india-news/meghalaya-election-2018-npp-to-form-government-with-help-of-others-says-conrad-sangma/1086158/
  23. ↑ http://www.thehindu.com/elections/meghalaya-2018/non-congress-parties-come-together-to-stake-a-claim-in-meghalaya/article22924097.ece
  24. ↑ http://www.thehindu.com/elections/meghalaya-2018/conrad-sangma-sworn-in-as-meghalaya-cm/article22940327.ece
  25. ↑ Nagaland Assembly elections 2018: Neiphiu Rio elected unopposed before polls
  26. ↑ Northeast polls: It’s advantage BJP
  27. ↑ "Election commission's statistical report on general elections, 2013 to the legislative assembly of Karnataka" (PDF).
  28. ↑ "Who should get first call to form govt in Karnataka? Jury's out". The Times of India. 16 May 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  29. ↑ "Jammu and Kashmir panchayat elections to be held in nine phases from 17 November to 11 December - Firstpost". www.firstpost.com. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
  30. ↑ "Questions in Jammu and Kashmir local polls". The Indian Express. 2018-10-03. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
  31. ↑ "First municipal elections since 2005; despite boycott by NC, PDP, civic poll dates out". The Indian Express. 2018-09-16. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
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