The upcoming Assembly Elections in four states - Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh - will coincide with the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections, commencing on April 19, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar announced at the Election Commission of India (ECI) press briefing on March 16.
Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh, constituting 60 assembly and 2 Lok Sabha seats, will witness simultaneous voting on April 19. Results will be declared on June 4, 12 days before the current Lok Sabha term ends on June 16.
In April 2019, the BJP secured victory in this Northeastern state with Pema Khandu taking charge as the Chief Minister. Presently, the BJP dominates the assembly with 41 seats, controlling 11 constituencies, alongside three candidates elected unopposed. The rest of the seats are held by the Janata Dal (United), the National People’s Party (NPP), Congress, and the People’s Party of Arunachal (PPA).
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Sikkim
Sikkim, with 32 assembly seats, will also hold state elections on April 19. Polling will occur in a single phase, with results slated to be out on June 4, before the current assembly's term ends on June 2.
The Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) currently governs the Himalayan state led by Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang.
During the 2019 Sikkim legislative assembly elections, the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) secured victory in 17 seats, establishing the government with Prem Singh Tamang as the chief minister, while the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) attained 15 seats.
Odisha
Odisha is scheduled to conduct elections for its 224-member state assembly in four phases on May 13, 20, 25, and June 1, coinciding with the general elections' fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh phases nationwide. Vote counting is set for June 4.
Elections in Odisha are anticipated to be a three-way contest, with the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) seeking a sixth consecutive term. The BJP aims to bolster its position, while the Congress endeavors to stage a comeback after being out of power since 2000.
Andhra Pradesh
In Andhra Pradesh, elections for the 175-member Assembly will be held in a single phase on May 13, and results are slated to be out on June 4.
This year, the BJP, TDP, and Pawan Kalyan's Jana Sena are joining forces in the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. In 2014, during the joint electoral campaign of TDP and BJP, Jana Sena stood as their external ally.
In 2019, the YSRCP secured 151 seats out of the 175-member Assembly in Andhra Pradesh, establishing dominance. Meanwhile, the TDP, which initially held 23 seats, saw a reduction to 19 following the resignation of Ganta Srinivas Rao and the defection of three MLAs to the YSRCP post-Assembly elections.
The Election Commission of India, on March 16, announced during a media briefing that the 2024 Lok Sabha elections will be conducted over seven phases, spanning from April 19 to June 1, with the vote counting scheduled for June 4.
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