The counting of votes for the assembly election in Tripura, as well as two other northeastern states – Meghalaya and Nagaland – began on Thursday, with the Bharatiya Janata Party looking to deepen its roots in Tripura (as most exit polls predicted), a Left bastion captured by the party in 2018.
According to early trends, the BJP is ahead of the Left and its ally Congress in Tripura. After the first round of voting, Chief Minister Manik Saha leads in the Town Bordowali seat.
Voting in Tripura, Meghalaya, and Nagaland began at 8 a.m. “Result trends begin at 8 a.m. on March 2nd,” according to a message on the Election Commission of India’s website. Postal ballots will be counted first, followed by electronic voting machines. The results will be posted on the election panel’s official website.
Top 10 election results in Tripura, Meghalaya, and Nagaland in 2023:
1) In Tripura, the ruling BJP has pulled ahead of its nearest rival, the Left-Congress coalition. The BJP is hoping for a big comeback, far exceeding its score of 36 in 2018. The BJP is currently leading with 30 seats, just one short of a majority.
2) “Tripura will have a BJP Chief Minister, Nagaland will have a coalition government, and Meghalaya will be decided based on seats won by the BJP,” Assam Chief Minister and the BJP’s chief strategist in the northeast, Himanta Biswa Sarma, predicted yesterday.
3) Tipra Motha, led by former royal Pradyot Manikya Debbarma, is leading in Tripura with 13 seats. The tribal-dominated party, which advocates for a Greater Tipraland, is viewed as an x-factor in these elections.
4) Meghalaya appears to be heading for a hung assembly, with no single party commanding a clear majority. Conrad Sangma’s National People’s Party (NPP) currently has 24 seats, falling seven seats short of a majority.
5) In Nagaland, the BJP and its partner, the NDPP (Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party), have surged ahead, taking 42 of the 60 seats in the assembly.
6) The results of these elections, as well as other polls later this year, will be critical for parties ahead of the general election next year.
7) Following a five-year alliance, the BJP and Conrad Sangma’s NPP contested the election separately in Meghalaya. However, the parties are said to be in talks. Mr. Sangma and Himanta Biswa Sarma met in Guwahati at midnight on Tuesday to discuss the situation. Although the leaders downplayed it as a “meeting between friends,” sources claim they discussed the possibility of a post-poll alliance.
8) Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress can play a key role in a tight race. Four exit polls predict that the BJP will gain seven seats, up from two, bringing the alliance’s strength to 27 seats, four short of a majority in the 60-member assembly.
9) The CPM, which ruled Tripura for 35 years, has joined forces with the Congress in what appears to be a last-ditch attempt to regain its numbers. Both parties’ support bases have dwindled dramatically over the last five years. The CPM ran for 47 of the state’s 60 seats, leaving the Congress with only 13 seats.
10) The results of several by-elections will also be announced, including Erode (East) in Tamil Nadu, Sagardighi in West Bengal, Ramgarh in Jharkhand, and Kasba Peth and Chinchwad in Maharashtra.
