The exit polls on Monday showed Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) returning to power in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, while AAP will sweep the MCD polls with a clear majority.
The exit polls, released after the second phase of voting concluded in Gujarat on Monday, indicated BJP retaining its winning streak for the seventh straight time with an increased seat tally in the range of 117-148 seats from its 2017 low of 99 in the 182-seat house. The polls showed AAP gaining a toehold at the expense of the Congress with a win in two seats constituencies at the least or 13 at best.Congress may lose ground with 41 seats, from its 2017’s tally of 77.
What surveys say
The new entrant Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which is trying to emerge as a national party, may make some dent in the vote shares in Gujarat, the exit polls showed.
The Republic TV P-MARQ survey gave 128-148 seats to BJP, 30-42 seats to Congress and 2-10 seats to AAP and up to 3 seats to others.
ABP-CVoter survey expects BJP to win 134, Congress 37, AAP 4 and others 4 with an increased vote share for BJP at 48.5 per cent.
NewsX-Jan ki Baat survey gives 117-140 seats to BJP, while Congress getting 34-51 and AAP 6-13 while others may get up to 2 seats.
Voter turnout down
Gujarat’s combined average voter turnout for both the phases was recorded at 61 per cent, lower than 69.7 per cent in 2017. After the exit polls, BJP’s Gujarat unit chief CR Paatil said, “The party is confident of setting a new record in terms of seat and vote share.”
Close contest in Himachal
In Himachal Pradesh, the BJP is seen in a close contest with the Congress in for 68-seat Assembly, but may comfortably cross majority mark. The voting for 68 seat was held in single phase on November 12 with average voting at 75.6 per cent. The exit polls give BJP seats in the range of 24-40, while Congress will get 20-40 seats. AAP, the polls predicted, may not be able to open its account.
‘Upset victory likely’
In the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) polls, the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP will spring a surprise sailing through all odds that the party and its leaders faced following corruption allegations. In the 250-ward MCD, AAP is set to topple the incumbent BJP by comfortably crossing the majority mark of 126 seats. The exit polls predict AAP winning anywhere between 146-175 wards, while BJP will be reduced to 69-94 seats. The Congress has bleak prospects here too getting maximum 10 wards. MCD’s civic polls were held on Sunday December 4 with average turnout of little more than 50 per cent.