Manipur Exit Poll Results 2022: BJP likely to retain power, predict post-election surveys; check details

Manipur Chief Minister and BJP leader Nongthombam Biren Singh

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is likely to retain power in Manipur by crossing the halfway-majority mark of 31 seats, suggested the exit polls released on March 7.

The party is likely to win 32-38 out of the 60 constituencies, said the Zee-Designboxed survey. The Congress was projected to emerge as a distant second with victory in 12-17 seats, whereas, the National People's Party (NPP) was predicted to win 2-4 seats and others 2-5.

The P-Marq exit poll predicted 27-31 seats for the BJP, 11-17 for the Congress, 6-10 for the NPP and 5-13 for others.

According to the Jan Ki Baat survey, the BJP is likely to win 23-28 seats, the Congress 10-14, NPP 7-8 and others 12-18.

The CNX survey predicted 26-31 seats for the BJP, 12-17 for the Congress, 6-10 for the NPP and 7-12 for others.

According to the India Today-Axis My India exit poll, the BJP is headed towards a victory in 33-43 seats, Congress 4-8, NPP 4-8 and others 6-15.

Follow live updates of the exit poll results of all 5 states

Voting for the 60-seat Manipur assembly was held in two phases - on February 28 and March 5. Despite violence on the polling day, an impressive turnout of 76.04 percent was recorded in the final round of the elections.

The state, once a a citadel of the Congress in the Northeast, was wrested by the BJP in 2017. Okrom Ibobi Singh, who was heading the Congress-led government for the last 15 years, was replaced by former footballer-turned-BJP leader N Biren Singh.

The Congress, despite failing to form the government, had emerged as the single-largest party with 28 seats -- three short of the halfway-majority mark.

The BJP and its pre-poll allies, which were trailing at 21 constituencies, had formed post-election coalitions with smaller parties to form the government.

Ahead of the 2022 polls, the BJP had expressed confidence of a full-majority victory. "Our tally will be higher than 2017. Over the past five years, the support for BJP has only grown in the state," Biren Singh had told reporters before the elections.

The opinion polls released ahead of the polls projected a likely return to power for the BJP. The party, as per the aggregate of the major pre-election surveys, was predicted to win 27-32 seats, whereas, the Congress was expected to be reduced to 18-22.