The Congress is projected to win big in Haryana, according to C-Voter poll, broadcast by India Today, released on October 5. The Congress is likely to secure 44 per cent vote share, up by 16 per cent from 2019. In terms of seats, the grand old party is expected to win 50-58 of 90 seats. The BJP, which has been ruling the state for 10 years, is likely to settle with just 20-28 seats, while others are expected to get 10-16 seats.
The Congress party's vote share has gone up at the cost of other parties such as Dushyant Chautala's JJP, whose vote share is likely to crash sharply. The BJP is projected to hold onto its vote share at 37 per cent. In the 2019 assembly polls, the Congress had got 30 assembly seats while the BJP won 40 and formed the government with JJP, which bagged 10 seats.
Former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda is the most preferred choice for the chief minister's post with 31 per cent popularity, followed by Nayab Singh Saini (22 per cent), and Deepender Hooda (10 per cent).
As per the polls, Anil Vij is facing a tough fight in the Ambala Cant constituency.
J&K Exit Polls 2024
The Congress-National Conference (NC) is likely to win 40-48 of 90 assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir, while the BJP is projected to win 27-32, India Today-CVoter exit polls showed. If these numbers hold on counting day, which is on October 8, Mehbooba Mufti's PDP may emerge as the kingmaker as the party is expected to get 6-12 seats.
The BJP is likely to continue its domination in Jammu and win 27-31 seats. The Congress-NC may get 11-15 of 43 seats in Jammu. In Kashmir, the Congress-NC is ahead and is likely to win 29-33 seats. Of the 90 assembly seats, 47 are in the Kashmir Valley while 43 are in Jammu.
The Congress and NC contested together in J&K, but they had "friendly fights" on some seats. In total, the grand old party contested 38 seats, while 58 went to the NC. The BJP, which has a marginal presence in Kashmir Valley, fought on only 62 of 90 seats.
J&K went to the polls in three phases, while voting for 90 assembly constituencies in Haryana was held in a single phase on Saturday. While Jammu and Kashmir witnessed a multi-cornered contest, it was largely bipolar in Haryana, where the Congress seemed confident of wresting the state back from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
BJP dominates in Jammu
BJP is likely to win 27-31 seats, while Congress-NC may get 11-15 seats in Jammu. The PDP may win 0-2 seats in Jammu. The saffron party is likely to score 41 per cent votes, while the INDIA bloc is likely to get 36 per cent votes. The PDP's vote share is likely to drop to 5 per cent.
In the Lok Sabha elections, the saffron party bagged 2 Lok Sabha seats but secured leads in 29 assembly segments.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the Congress has allied with Farooq Abdullah's National Conference (NC), while Mehbooba Mufti's PDP and the BJP have gone solo. Besides these, Altaf Bukhari's Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party, Ghulam Nabi Azad-led Democratic Progressive Azad Party, and Sajjad Gani Lone's Jammu and Kashmir People's Conference are also in the fray.
In the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, the BJP and Congress dominate the Jammu region, while PDP and NC have clout in the Kashmir Valley. While the Kashmir Valley has 47 assembly seats, Jammu has 43. The saffron party will be hoping for a good show in Jammu, especially after the abrogation of Article 370.
In the last assembly elections, held 10 years ago, PDP had emerged as the single largest party with 28 of 90 assembly seats, followed by BJP (25), and the NC (15). The Congress came in fourth with just 12 seats, down by 5 from 2008.
Haryana Exit Polls 2024
In Haryana, the saffron party is fighting to hold the fort while the Congress is determined to win back the state. Besides the BJP and Congress, Dushyant Chautala's JJP, Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, and Abhay Singh Chautala's INLD are also in the fray. The Congress has left the Bhiwani seat for its INDIA bloc partner CPI(M), while the BJP has made way in Sirsa for Haryana Lokhit Party chief Gopal Kanda, who is seeking re-election.
J&K gets five MLAs
Meanwhile, the J&K Lieutenant Governor (LG) is likely to nominate five MLAs in the Assembly based on the advice of the Home Ministry. The Congress has opposed the nomination of five MLAs before the government formation in Jammu and Kashmir. Five nominated MLAs will have a significant role in forming the new government. This process follows an amendment to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which was further revised on July 26, 2023 to introduce these nominations. In that case, the J&K assembly will expand to 95 members, increasing the majority threshold to 48 seats to form a government.