Rahul Gandhi, who is contesting from Rae Bareli seat, has won with a large margin of around four lakh votes, bettering his mother Sonia Gandhi’s victory margin in 2019. The Congress leader also won Wayanad from Kerala.
According to the Election Commission (EC), Rahul Gandhi secured a total of 6,87,649 votes against the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Dinesh Pratap Singh who got 2,97,619 votes. Thakur Prasad Yadav of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) secured 21,624 votes.
In this election, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi did not contest from Rae Bareli and opted for the Rajya Sabha. Last month, Sonia Gandhi had said that she was giving her son to the people of Rae Bareli, asserting that “Rahul will not disappoint you”.
Rae Bareli went to the polls in the fifth phase on May 20. Three major contestants – Congress’s Rahul Gandhi, BJP’s Dinesh Pratap Singh and BSP’s Thakur Pratap Yadav contested. The voter turnout on May 20 was 57.85%.
Best chess player among Indian politicians
The 53-year-old describes himself as the best chess player among Indian politicians. His latest gambit of relying on social justice as the running theme of his campaign seems to have paid off with his party making a surprising comeback in the Hindi belt, making significant gains in Rajasthan, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
Congress leaders credit Rahul Gandhi for a campaign that focussed on people’s issues and welfare measures, one of the reasons for the party’s stunning fightback against the high-on-confidence BJP.
Results
| Party-Candidate | Status |
| Congress – Rahul Gandhi | Won |
| BJP – Dinesh Pratap Singh | Lost |
| BSP – Thakur Pratap Yadav | Lost |
Rae Bareli
Rae Bareli has five assembly segments – Bachhrawan, Harchandpur, Rae Bareli, Sareni and Unchahar. In 2019, Bareli population consisted of 9.59 lakhs of which nearly 30% belonged to Scheduled Castes, 12% Muslims, 11% Brahmins, 11% Rajputs, and 9% Yadavs.
Considered one of the most important constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, Rae Bareli has been the bastion of the Gandhi family since 1967. Feroz Gandhi, former Indian PM Indira Gandhi’s husband held the position in 1952, 1957 while Indira Gandhi smelled victory in 1967 and 1971. Presently, the seat is held by senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, winning five times – 2004, 2006, 2009, 2014, and 2019.
This time, she refrained from entering the electoral race and cast her son and leader Rahul Gandhi as a candidate. Rahul is already a sitting MP from Wayanad. This is the first time he will be fighting for the prestigious seat.
2019
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi was again victorious by winning a vote share of 55.80% (5,33,687 votes), defeating BJP’s Dinesh Pratap Singh who secured a vote share of 38.36% (367,740 votes). The senior Congress leader won by a margin of 1,67,848 votes.
Here is a table format
| Candidate | Party | Vote share (%) |
| Sonia Gandhi | Congress | 55.80% (5,33,687 votes) |
| Dinesh Pratap Singh | BJP | 38.36% (367,740 votes) |
2014
In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi won the elections by a vote share of 63.80% (5,26,434 votes). The runner-up BJP’s Ajay Agarwal got 21.05% vote share (1,73,721 votes) followed by Bahujan Samajwadi Party leader Pravesh Singh with 7.71% (63,633 votes). Gandhi won with a majority of 3,52,715 votes.
| Candidate | Party | Vote share (%) |
| Sonia Gandhi | Congress | 66.80% (5,26,434 votes) |
| Ajay Agarwal | BJP | 21.05% (1,73,721votes) |
| Pravesh Singh | BSP | 7.71% (63,633 votes) |
