As the counting of votes concluded in Rajasthan, uncertainty loomed over who would be the BJP’s chief minister in the state.
The BJP stepped into battle ground in all four states without a CM face however, emerged victorious in three, including Madhya Pradesh which they retained despite sidelining Shivaraj Singh Chouhan.
The probable BJP candidates include Vasundhara Raje and Baba Balak Nath, who is also a people’s and party favourite.
As the counting of votes began in four of 5 states that went to elections this November, early trends reflected the Congress majority in Rajasthan, however, the party offices looked deserted towards the second BJP number shot up.
The BJP in Rajasthan is leading by 115 seats, while the Congress leads in 69. BHRTADVSIP, BSP, RLTP and IND 3, 2, 1 and 8.
LIVE updates
8:00 pm: Only 9 of 25 of the outgoing cabinet of Rajasthan won seats including the chief minister Ashok Gehlot, managed to win while only three out of seven contesting Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs lost the battle in the state assembly election held on November 25, with results declared on Sunday.
7:00 pm: Incumbent chief minister Ashok Gehlot tendered his resignation to the Rajasthan Governor after losing the state to BJP which won 115 seats while the Congress party secured 69 seats.
5:30 pm: “Judega Bharat, Jeetega INDIA!” Jairam Ramesh over loss in 3 states.
5:00 pm: Expressing shock over the results in Rajasthan, Ashok Gehlot accepted the result with humility.
4:30 pm: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge thanked the people who voted for Congress while expressing disappointment in the results overall.
“I also thank all those who voted for us in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Our performance in these three states have no doubt been disappointing, but with determination, we reaffirm our strong resolve to rebuild and revive ourselves in these three states,” Mallikarjun Kharge tweeted.
4:00 pm: Congress’ Tonk candidate Sachin thanked the people of his constituency for Sachin Pilot thanked the people for their blessings.
3:45 pm: Gehlot is expected to meet with Governor Kalraj Mishra at 5:30 pm and submit his resignation from the position of Chief Minister after conceding defeat in the Rajasthan.
3:00 pm: In her first press conference, post a graceful win in Jhalarapatan, Raje thanked the BJP leadership, while evading all questions over her being the CM face in the state.
While Raje is the most popular face to be CM in the state, she is followed by Baba Balak Nath who is also a people’s and party favourite.
2:15 pm: BJP leaders echo “Modi ki Guarantee” phrase as Rajasthan witnesses a BJP wave.
1:55 pm: BJP MP and candidate Diya Kumari from Vidhyadhar Nagar is leading by a margin of 56,025 votes after the 17th round of counting, garnering a total of 1,30,231 votes so far.
1:54 pm: Supporters of BJP in Rajasthan are rooting for Vasundhara Raje to become the next Chief Minister due to the party’s expected victory.
1:50 pm: BJP MP and Tijara candidate Baba Balak Nath leads with 64,579 votes after 12th counting round, ahead by 4807 votes.
12:54 pm: As Congress trails in 3 states, leader Acharya Pramod said that the ‘curse of Sanatan’ has drowned the Congress everywhere.
12:15 pm: In the North Kota constituency, state Parliamentary Affairs Minister Shanti Dhariwal was lagging behind BJP candidate Prahlad Gunjal by 3,490 votes. Dhariwal has got 8,558 votes so far while Gunjal has got 12,048, it showed.
Congress candidates took an early lead in some other constituencies.
State minister Vishvendra Singh of the Congress was leading on the Deeg Kumher seat in Bharatpur district by a margin of 1,461 votes.
12:05 pm: In the Jhotwara assembly constituency, the Congress’ Abhishek Choudhary is ahead of his nearest rival Rajyavardhan Rathore of the BJP by a margin of 5,017 votes.
Congress candidate Narendra Budania is leading on the Taranagar seat with a margin of 4,020 votes. Budania is contesting against Leader of Opposition in the assembly Rajendra Rathore on this seat.
The Congress’ Prashant Sharma is leading over his BJP rival Satish Poonia with a margin of 2,684 votes in the Amber seat. Sharma has received 16,100 votes and Poonia has got 13,416, the EC data showed.
Congress candidate and former chief secretary Niranjan Arya is leading on the Sojat seat with a margin of 610 votes.
12:00 pm: Rajasthan assembly Speaker C P Joshi was trailing his BJP rival Vishvaraj Singh Mewar in Rajsamand district’s Nathdwara seat.
Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasra was leading in Lacchmangarh as early trends for the assembly polls poured in on Sunday. Joshi was trailing by 1,154 votes and Dotasra was leading with a margin of 1,618.
The Rajasthan Congress chief has so far polled 9,907 votes and is ahead of his BJP rival Subhash Maharia. Joshi has got 7,262 votes against Mewar’s 8,416.
11:59 am: As leads show BJP leading over Congress, BJP spokesperson took a dig at Rahul Gandhi with a post on X. “Panauti Kaun?” asked Poonawala on X, taking a dig at Gandhi after his comments on PM Modi over his presence at the Final of the Cricket World Cup where India lost to Australia after a winning streak.
11:26 am: Former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president Satish Poonia is trailing in the Amber assembly seat by 2,986 votes, according to the Election Commission trends on Sunday.
11:20 am: Poonia is pitted against Congress’ Prashant Sharma, who is leading with 21,673 votes in four of 20 rounds.
BJP’s Kirodi Lal Meena is leading in the Sawai Madhopur seat with a margin of 3,506 votes against his Congress rival Danish Abrar.
Meena, Rajya Sabha MP, is leading with 12,275 votes in three of 19 rounds, according to the Election Commission.
11:22 am: In the Tonk seat, BJP candidate Ajit Singh Mehta is trailing by a margin of 3,607 votes. Mehta is pitted against Congress leader and former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot.
Pilot is leading with 14,398 votes in three of 20 rounds.
In the Lacchmangarh seat, BJP’s Subhash Maharia is trailing by a margin of 1,618 votes. PCC president Govind Singh Dotasra is contesting as the Congress candidate on this seat.
Dotasra, with 9,907 votes, is leading in two of 24 rounds.
11:15 am: As the BJP looks to make a mark in 3 of 4 states that went to elections this year, the Congress looks to prepare for 2024 polls with the INDIA alliance.
10:29 am: Rajasthan BJP cadre celebrates the party’s lead in state elections, in Jaipur
9:58 am: BHRTADVSIP, CPI (M) BSP, and IND lead in 4, 2, 2, and 5 seats respectively.
9:54 am: The BJP has taken the lead in 86 over the Congress which leads in 64 seats.
9:13 am: The BSP, RLD, and RLTP all lead in 1 seat each.
9:06 am: The Election Commission of India’s 9:00 am update gives Congres the lead in 8 of 199 seats in the state. Whereas BJP leads in 6.
ECI’s early trends in Rajasthan
8:46 am: Rajasthan’s Sikar Congress leads in two seats.
8:30 am: Congress leading in 2 seats of Chittorgarh.
8:29 am: BJP leading in early trends of Rajasthan’s Bharatpur.
8:20 am: BJP’s Siddhi Kumari leads in Bikaner East. Rajasthan incumbent CM Ashok Gehlot leads in Sardarpura.
8:14 am: BJP leads in Rajasthan in 50 seats. Vasundhara Raje and Harlal Saharan leads in Churu and Jhalrapatan.
8:00 am: Counting of votes begins in all four states.
Rajasthan Elections 2023
The fate of 1,875 candidates, including 183 women in Rajasthan as the counting of votes begins in four of five states that went to polls in November.
The five-year tenure of the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly will end on 14 January 2024. Voting was held in 199 out of 200 constituencies of Rajasthan on 25 November 2023 in single-phased elections. The Election Commission of India has postponed the polls in one remaining seat after the death of an Independent candidate in the Karanpur constituency passed away.
The Indian National Congress emerged victorious in the Rajasthan Assembly elections held in 2018, securing 100 seats, and Ashok Gehlot was appointed as the chief minister of the state. The Bharatiya Janata Party came second with 73 seats.
Currently, the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly is governed by the INC, Rashtriya Lok Dal, and independent candidates, while the BJP, Rashtriya Loktantrik Party, Bharatiya Tribal Party, and Communist Party of India (Marxist) serve as the opposition. The INC holds 108 seats, while the BJP has 70 seats.
Exit polls for Rajasthan Assembly elections suggest that the BJP and the Congress will be neck to neck in the battle for power in the state.
Aside from the Congress and BJP, the RLP is a significant party in the state that has fielded 78 candidates.
Sardarpura has been a significant constituency in Rajasthan with CM Ashok Gehlot winning the seat since 1998. BJP candidate and former CM Vasundhara Raje contested from Jhalarapatan, a seat she has held since 2003.
Rajasthan’s state Assembly polls held on 25 November 2023 witnessed a voter turnout of 75.45%, marginally higher than the previous 2018 elections, with women turning out in greater numbers than men. The fate of the two parties will tell people what to expect in the General Elections scheduled for early 2024.
