Jharkhand election 2024: Phase 1 voting on November 13 | Key candidates and constituencies
Key constituencies to watch in the first phase include Seraikella, Ranchi, Jamshedpur West, Jagannathpur, and Jamshedpur East.
Jharkhand’s first phase of polling is set for Wednesday, November 13, covering 43 seats with 685 candidates in the fray, in what is seen as a direct contest between the NDA and the INDIA bloc.
In the first phase of polling, Jamshedpur West will see the highest number of candidates, with 28 nominees, while Jagannathpur has the lowest, with only eight candidates filing nominations.
Elections for the 81-member Jharkhand assembly will be held in two phases on November 13 and 20, with the vote count scheduled for November 23.
In the run-up to Wednesday's voting, PM Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah led the NDA, conducting numerous rallies and roadshows over the past two weeks.
Chief minister Hemant Soren and his MLA wife Kalpana intensified their campaigning for JMM and alliance partners, including Congress, through extensive tours.
Rahul Gandhi and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge also visited the state twice each to engage with voters.
The state has a total of 2.6 crore voters, comprising 1.31 crore men and 1.29 crore women. Voters aged between 20 and 29 number 66.84 lakh, with 11.84 lakh first-time voters aged 18 and 19.
Seraikella, Ranchi, Jamshedpur West, Jagannathpur, and Jamshedpur East are among the key constituencies to watch in the first phase.
Seraikella: The constituency has had only one assembly representative since 2005—Champai Soren. A six-time MLA, Soren served twice in Bihar and four times in Jharkhand and is closely linked with Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) founder Shibu Soren for leading the Jharkhand movement.
However, in January 2024, following Hemant Soren’s arrest, Champai Soren took over as chief minister, raising the profile of the constituency. However, Champai Soren, now a BJP candidate, replaces Ganesh Mahli, who is now with JMM.
Jamshedpur East: The Congress is banking on Ajoy Kumar to make a breakthrough in the Jamshedpur (East) assembly segment, a seat it has failed to win since 1985. Former IPS officer-turned-politician Ajoy Kumar is considered the Congress party's strongest candidate in years. Kumar, 62, is leveraging his reputation as a tough cop during his tenure as SP in Jamshedpur. He is facing BJP candidate Purnima Das Sahu, who is vying to carry forward the legacy of her father-in-law, former chief minister Raghubar Das.
Jagannathpur: The Bharatiya Janata Party has fielded Geeta Kora from the Jagannathpur constituency in Jharkhand. Geeta Kora, the lone Lok Sabha member of the Congress from Jharkhand, had joined the BJP in February 2024, just ahead of the general elections. She and her husband, former Chief Minister Madhu Kora, had switched to Congress before the 2019 general elections, where she secured a victory from the Chaibasa (West Singhbhum) Lok Sabha seat.
Jamshedpur West: The assembly constituency is witnessing a renewed battle between old rivals Banna Gupta of Congress and Saryu Roy of JDU. Gupta, a prominent minister in the Congress government, holds the health and family welfare portfolio and claims to have brought several development projects to the city, strengthening his voter base. On the other hand, Roy, who was initially a BJP member, rose to prominence after defeating former chief minister Raghubar Das in 2014, earning the moniker “giant killer.” After his fallout with Das, Roy contested as an independent from Jamshedpur East and won.
Ranchi: Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) has fielded Mahua Maji as its candidate for the Ranchi assembly seat. A current Rajya Sabha MP, Maji is set to challenge BJP's CP Singh in the polls. She made history as the first woman from Jharkhand to be elected to the Rajya Sabha. Mahua Maji holds a PhD in sociology and has actively participated in parliamentary debates, including discussing energy issues such as the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill, 2022. She is also a member of the Parliamentarians’ Group for Clean Air.