About State Elections
Besides the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, a lot of electoral action is on the cards across various states this year. During the general election, assembly polls will simultaneously take place in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim. In Andhra Pradesh, YSR Congress under chief minister Jagan Mohan Reddy is looking to retain its grip on power. The ruling party faces a stiff challenge from the Telugu Desam Party led by former CM Chandrababu Naidu. Notably, Naidu has formed an alliance with the Jana Sena Party to unseat the incumbent government.
In Odisha, it will be a repeat of BJD vs BJP with chief minister Naveen Patnaik hoping for a record-breaking sixth consecutive term in power. However, with BJP eyeing big gains in the state amid its growing national presence, Patnaik faces a formidable challenge. In Arunachal Pradesh, BJP is looking to retain its grip on power while in Sikkim, it will be a classic contest between the ruling SKM and opposition SDF. Later this year, the focus will shift to Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand where assembly elections are due in October-November. The polling will be closely watched in both Maharashtra and Jharkhand, the states which have witnessed political instability since the previously assembly polls.
In Maharashtra, the breakaway of the Eknath Shinde-led faction from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena resulted in the downfall of the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition. Subsequently, Shinde formed a new government in alliance with the BJP, marking the return of NDA in the state. In Jharkhand, although the JMM-Congress coalition has maintained its hold on power, it faced a setback with the resignation of chief minister Hemant Soren due to his involvement in a money laundering case. Hemant Soren was replaced by party leader Champai Soren, who faces a big challenge within a year of assuming power. Moreover, elections are also expected in Jammu and Kashmir, which was bifurcated into two Union territories after the revocation of Article 370 in 2019.
Since December 2018, the region has been under Presidents rule. State parties have been advocating strongly for the J&K polls, especially after the completion of seat delimitation in May of the previous year, which was accompanied by a special revision of electoral rolls based on the newly demarcated constituencies. While the Lok Sabha elections will define the national landscape for at least the next five years, the crucial state polls will give it further shape with both national and regional parties engaging in an intense tussle for power through the year.
