After months of campaigning and polling in the midst of one of the biggest health crises faced by India, the general assembly elections in four states and a Union Territory has just concluded with the counting of votes and announcement of the results.
Let us take a closer look at how the political parties performed in each state/UT.
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West Bengal - TMC Retains Most Seats, Despite BJP's Gains
West Bengal, which saw the most heated and stretched out polling in eight phases, was secured by the incumbent Trinamool Congress in a landslide victory with 212 seats. Rival Bharatiya Janata Party, which ran a fierce campaign against Banerjee, was only able to secure 78 seats, despite major gains from 3 seats in the 2016 elections.
While TMC's victory became apparent early on in the race with a decisive lead, a fierce battle continued in Nandigram between party supremo Mamata Banerjee and turncoat Suvendu Adhikari. While it was initially reported that Banerjee had won the seat, conflicting reports came out claiming Adhikari has taken lead. The Election Commission is yet to provide a clear result for Nandigram.
Kerala - LDF Retains Power In Historic Win
Kerala's Left Democratic Front led by incumbent Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan made history in the state, after being the first coalition to be re-elected for a second term in over 40 years with 95 seats, up from 91 seats from 2016 polls. The Indian National Congress-led United Democratic Front coalition managed to get 44 seats, unable to break the incumbency.
BJP, which was looking to make an entry in the state, lost the one seat it had won in 2016, ending up with zero seats in the souther state.
Tamil Nadu - DMK Lanslide Victory
In another landslide victory, Tamil Nadu's Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam has flipped the state from the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam after 10 years, winning 143 seats, while AIAMK was able to secure only 89 seats.
Kamal Hassan's Makkal Needhi Maiam, which failed to make a mark in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, won one seat this time, securing Hassan's own constituency at Coimbatore South.
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Assam - BJP Retains
The Bharatiya Janata Party was victorious in Assam, where it retained power with 76, up from 74 seats in 2016 polls. The Congress party performing poorly, unable to break the incumbency in yet another sets, with 48 seats, despite a 6-seat gain from 2016 polls..
Puducherry - BJP Flips UT From Congress
Congress is looking to be swept out of power from Puducherry by BJP, a newcomer in the state, with a lead in 14 seats. The Congress-led coalition, which had secured 17 seats in the 30-seat assembly in 2016, is only leading in 7 seats this year.