Karnataka Lok Sabha Election Phase 2: Key constituencies and candidates

Congress and BJP

The crucial state of Karnataka is set to vote in all-crucial Parliamentary Polls in two phases. The two phases of voting are set to occur in the second phase and third phase of the General Election, scheduled on April 26 and May 7 respectively. A total of 1206 candidates from 12 States/UTs will compete in the second phase of Lok Sabha elections 2024.

Key constituencies going to polls in Karnataka in the second phase are Bangalore Rural, Bangalore North, Bangalore Central, Bangalore South, Mandya, and Mysore. Karnataka has 28 seats, of which the BJP had won 25 in 2019. This time, the BJP is contesting on 25, while its ally in the state JDS is fighting on 3 seats.

All three seats that the JDS are contesting are going to polls in the second phase - Hassan, Mandya, and Kolar. In Mandya, former Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy is facing Venkataramane Gowda of the Congress. In Hassan, JDS leader Prajwal Revanna is up against Shreyas Patel Gowda of Congress.

Bangalore South and Mysuru are other key seats going to polls on April 26. Tejasvi Surya is seeking another term from Bangalore South, while Yaduveer Wadiyar, royal scion, is contesting from Musuru. Wadiyar was picked here in place of sitting MP Pratap Simha.

In 2019, the BJP won 25 seats with a vote share of 51.2% in Karnataka – which was its best performance both in terms of number of seats and vote share – while the Congress party, JD(S) and Independent won one seat each. The saffron party won 17 and 19 seats in the 2014 and 2009 general elections, respectively. In 2004 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP won 18 seats while the Congress managed to win only eight and the JD (S) was victorious in two constituencies.

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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has never won southern Karnataka’s Mandya Lok Sabha seat. The party came close to winning the seat in 2019, when an Independent that it supported, Sumalatha Ambareesh, defeated Janata Dal Secular’s (JDS’s) Nikhil Kumaraswamy, an actor and son of former Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar's brother DK Suresh is the second richest candidate in Phase 2 of the Lok Sabha elections. Karnataka is among the 13 states going to the polls in the second phase on April 26. In the southern state, 14 of 28 constituencies are up for grabs in Phase 2. DK Suresh is running for another term from Bengaluru Rural.

Karnataka's status as one of the fastest-growing economies in the nation, propelled by its robust IT sector, poses challenges for parties like BJP and INC, grappling with anti-incumbency sentiments. Issues like corruption, unemployment, and inflation remain at the top of the minds of the voters. Recently, Bengaluru witnessed severe water scarcity and the life of the citizens came to a standstill.