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JD(S) seeming to be ready to play the king maker role. Counting of votes began at 8 am across 36 centres in the state amid tight security. Section 144 of CrPC has been imposed in capital city of Karnataka, Bengaluru, where traffic restrictions have also been introduced for the counting day. Section 144 will be imposed in the entire district from 6 am on Saturday to 12 am on Sunday. Liquor sale has also been reportedly banned in the Bengaluru police commissionerate region.
While the official numbers will come by late evening, a clear picture of whether it will be BJP, Congress or JD(S) is expected to be with us by mid-day.
The electoral fortunes of top leaders and key candidates like — Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai of the BJP, Congress heavyweights Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar, JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy and many others was sealed on Wednesday, May 10, when the state voted in 224 assembly constituencies in a single-phased assembly poll.
The magic number, the majority mark, that the parties are hoping to crack is 113 in the state with 224 assembly constituencies.
What Were Exit Poll Results
Most exit polls predicted a tight contest between the Congress and BJP, however, the former was given an edge by most pollsters, which the Saffron party is confident to prove wrong. JD(S), meanwhile, appears to be expecting a hung verdict, which would enable it to play a role in government formation, or “king maker”.
While the ABP News-C Voter exit poll predicted that Congress will get 100-112 seats, BJP 83-95, JD(S) 21-29, the Republic TV-P MARQ forecast said that the Grand Old Party will get 94-108 seats, the Saffron party 85-100 and JD(S) 24-32.
India Today-Axis My India predicted 62-80 seats for BJP, 122-140 for Congress, and 20-25 for JD(S). The India TV-CNX predicted that the Congress may get 110-120 seats and the BJP 80-90 seats, while the JD(S) 20-24 seats.
The TV9 Bharatvarsh-Polstrat exit poll projected 99-109 seats for Congress, 88-98 for BJP and 21-26 for JD(S). Zee News-Matrize forecast said that the Congress is likely to get 103-118, the BJP 79-94 and the JD(S) 25-33.
As per the News Nation-CGS poll, the BJP is likely to get 114 seats, Congress 86 and JD(S) 21. The Suvarna News-Jan Ki Baat predicted that the Bharatiya Janata Party was expected to bag 94-117, Congress 91-106 and the JD(S) 14-24 seats.
Times Now-ETG exit polls predicted 113 seats to the Congress, 85 to the BJP and 23 seats for JD(S).
They Key Candidates
Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar, newsmaker Jagadish Shettar who switched from BJP after being denied a ticket, Laxman Savadi, Mallikarjun Kharge’s son Priyank Kharge are some of Congress’s key candidates.
BJP has chief minister Basavaraj Bommai, BS Yediyurappa’s son Vijayendra Yediyurappa, CT Ravi and Ramesh Jarkiholi among its key candidates. HD Kumaraswamy, his son Nikhil Kumaraswamy are among the top faces in the JD(S).
2018 Karnataka Election
The BJP had in 2018 emerged as the single largest party by winning 104 seats, followed by Congress that won 80 seats and JD(S) 37. One independent candidate, and one candidate each from BSP and Karnataka Pragnyavantha Janatha Party (KPJP) also won from their seats.
In the 2018 elections, the Congress garnered a vote-share of 38.04 per cent, followed by the BJP (36.22 per cent) and the JD(S) (18.36 per cent).
With no party getting a clear majority at the time and as Congress and JD(S) tried to forge an alliance as no party got a clear majority. BJP’s BS Yediyurappa staked claim and formed the government as his was the single largest party. This didn’t last long and the government dissolved within three days, ahead of a trust vote, as the BJP strongman was unable to muster the required numbers.
Subsequently, the Congress-JD(S) alliance formed the government with Kumaraswamy as chief minister. This government, too, collapsed in 14 months, triggered by the resignation of 17 ruling coalition legislators and their subsequent defection to the BJP.
This paved the way for BJP’s return to power. In the bypolls held subsequently in 2019, the ruling party won 12 out of 15 seats. In the outgoing Assembly, the ruling BJP has 116 MLAs, followed by 69 of Congress, 29 of JD(S) 29, one from BSP one, two independents, one speaker one and six vacant six seats as a result of deaths and resignations to join other parties ahead of the elections.