Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, who is contesting from Kerala’s Wayanad and Uttar Pradesh’s (UP) Rae Bareli seats, has won both the constituencies with a thumping margin of votes, reported the Election Commission of India (ECI) website.
In Wayanad, Gandhi beat Communist Party of India's (CPI) Annie Raja by a margin of whooping 3,64,422 votes, while Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Kerala State President K Surendran finished third by securing 1,41,045 votes.
Also read: UP Lok Sabha Election results LIVE
In the traditional Congress bastion of Rae Bareli, the Congress leader beat the BJP's Dinesh Pratap Singh, again by a huge margin of 3,89,341 votes. Bahujan Samaj Party's (BSP) Thakur Prasad Yadav finished third by securing just 21,588 votes.
This is not Rahul Gandhi’s first stint at running from two Lok Sabha seats. Back in 2019, he faced a tough battle in Amethi, losing to Union minister and senior BJP leader Smriti Irani. However, he secured a resounding win in Wayanad.
Also read: Kerala Lok Sabha election results LIVE
Since 2014, the former Congress president, has been actively leading his party’s campaign to improve its electoral performance. The India’s grand old party not only lost general elections, but also ceded power in many states.
{{/usCountry}}Since 2014, the former Congress president, has been actively leading his party’s campaign to improve its electoral performance. The India’s grand old party not only lost general elections, but also ceded power in many states.
{{/usCountry}}As the votes were being counted, initial results showed a close contest between him and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates Dinesh Pratap Singh in Uttar Pradesh and K Surendran in Kerala.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Rahul secured a 64.67% vote share from Wayanad, defeating Communist Party of India (CPI) candidate PP Suneer, who managed to get 25.14%. The victory margin was recorded at 39.53%, a figure unmatched by any winning candidate in the constituency so far.
In that year, the Gandhi scion lost from Amethi, a constituency he had represented in the lower house of Parliament for three consecutive terms from 2004 to 2019. His political opponent, Smriti Irani, secured 49.71% of the votes, while he received 43.86%.
Also read: Lok Sabha election results all constituencies
In the run-up to the 2024 elections, Rahul Gandhi chose Rae Bareli, a seat held by his mother Sonia Gandhi for 20 straight years from 2004 to 2024. Sonia Gandhi has opted out of the heat and dust of the Lok Sabha election. She is now a member of the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, BJP’s candidate Dinesh Pratap Singh reduced Sonia Gandhi’s victory margin to 17.44% from 42.75% in 2014, when she faced the saffron party’s Ajay Agrawal.
Rae Bareli went to the polls in the fifth phase on May 20, recording a voter turnout of 58.12%, while Wayanad voted in the second phase on April 26, with a turnout of 72.69%.
The Lok Sabha polls for 543 seats were conducted in seven phases, starting from April 19. The Bharatiya Janata Party is aiming for a rare third consecutive term at the Centre, with Narendra Modi as Prime Minister.