Maharashtra, Jharkhand assembly elections, by-polls to be held from Nov 13 to 20

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hopes to keep up the momentum of the unexpected victory and return to power in Haryana for a record third time this month

Assembly elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand and by-polls to Lok Sabha seats, including Kerala’s Wayanad, and 48 assembly constituencies across states will be held between November 13 and 20, the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced on Tuesday, setting the stage for the second major electoral exercise since the Lok Sabha polls this summer. The results will be announced on November 23.

Chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar and election commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu. (X)

The single-phase polling in Maharashtra will be held on 20. Jharkhand will go to the polls in two phases on November 13 and 20, and Wayanad on November 13. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi vacated the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat and retained Uttar Pradesh’s Rae Bareli after winning both. In June, Congress announced Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s electoral debut from the Wayanad seat.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hopes to keep up the momentum of the unexpected victory and return to power in Haryana for a record third time this month. The polls in Haryana were held along with Jammu & Kashmir, where the National Conference-led alliance swept to power.

The BJP overcame anti-incumbency and registered its highest vote share and seat tally—48 of the 90 seats—even as exit polls predicted Congress’s victory in Haryana. The Congress failed to consolidate its national poll performance this summer when it won five of the 10 Lok Sabha seats in Haryana. Its performance was better in Maharashtra, where it emerged as the largest party in the national elections by winning 13 of the 48 seats. The BJP and Shiv Sena (UBT) won nine seats each, Nationalist Congress Party – Sharadchandra Pawar (NCPSP) eight, Shiv Sena seven, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) one, and independent one.

In 2019, the single-phase election to the 288-member Maharashtra assembly elections was held on October 21. The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance won a majority but the alliance ended due to differences over the chief ministerial post. The President’s rule was imposed in the state before BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in as the chief minister and NCP’s Ajit Pawar his deputy on November 23, 2019. The two resigned three days later before the floor test.

On November 28, 2019, Shiv Sena, NCP, and Congress formed the government as part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance with Uddhav Thackeray as the chief minister. Thackeray resigned on June 29, 2022, after a faction of Eknath Shinde-led 40 lawmakers split and allied with the BJP. Shinde was subsequently sworn in as chief minister and Fadnavis as his deputy.

The Supreme Court in June 2023 said it could have reinstated Thackeray had he not resigned as the chief minister. It added the court cannot quash a resignation and maintained status quo ante cannot be given since Thackeray resigned. The court said the governor erred in concluding that Thackeray had lost the majority in the House after the Shinde rebellion. It added the governor had no objective materials to call for a floor test.

The NCP also split in 2023 as Ajit Pawar led a rebellion like Shinde along with nine of his party colleagues, and was sworn in as the deputy chief minister.

In 2019, assembly elections to 81-member Jharkhand assembly were held from November 30 to December 20. The results were declared on December 23, with the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led alliance emerging as the winner with 47 seats. The BJP bagged 25 assembly seats. It emerged as the biggest party in the Lok Sabha by winning eight of the 14 seats this summer. The JMM won three, and ally Congress two Lok Sabha seats. The AJSU Party won the remaining Lok Sabha seat.