In Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state Gujarat, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) returned to power with a thumping majority on Thursday. Incumbent Gujarat chief minister Bhupendra Patel is set to take oath on December 12. The BJP won the highest number of seats in Gujarat's history and recorded its seventh straight win.
The BJP not only improved its own record of 127 seats, made in 2002 with Narendra Modi as chief minister but surpassed the Congress's best tally of 149 seats in the 1985 election.
Gujarat: Comparison of seat share between 2017 and 2022:
2017 Gujarat assembly election results
Total: 182 seats
BJP: 99
Congress: 77
BTP: 2
NCP: 1
Independents: 3
2022 Gujarat assembly election results
Total: 182 seats
BJP: 156
Congress: 17
AAP: 5
SP: 1
Independents: 3
While the BJP set new records in the home state of Modi and home minister Amit Shah with its "historic" and "phenomenal" victory for a three-fourths majority, it lost Himachal Pradesh to the Congress after a close fight, as the hill state continued with its tradition of nearly four decades in voting out the incumbent party.
With a nearly 13 per cent vote share, the Arvind Kejriwal-headed AAP won only five of the 181 seats it contested. In a video message, the Delhi chief minister said though the AAP has not won many seats the votes the party got helped it attain the national party status. The AAP also called its showing impressive.
{{/usCountry}}With a nearly 13 per cent vote share, the Arvind Kejriwal-headed AAP won only five of the 181 seats it contested. In a video message, the Delhi chief minister said though the AAP has not won many seats the votes the party got helped it attain the national party status. The AAP also called its showing impressive.
{{/usCountry}}(With inputs from agencies)