Andhra Pradesh Assembly Exit Poll Results 2024: It's Chandrababu Naidu in Andhra again, predicts Axis My India

Andhra Pradesh Assembly Exit Poll Results 2024: And it's Chandrababu Naidu in Andhra again. Former Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's Telugu Desam Party (TDP) is set to make a comeback after five years by defeating Jagan Mohan Reddy's YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), Axis My India predicted on Sunday, a day after it projected 21-23 of 25 Lok Sabha seats for the NDA. 

If these predictions hold on counting day, it would be a body blow for Jagan.    

While Jagan's YSRCP went solo in the elections and contested all 175 assembly seats, the BJP made what many called a smart move to ally with the TDP and Telugu star Pawan Kalyan's Jana Sena Party (JSP). As part of the deal, the TDP is contesting 144 seats, Jana Sena 21, and BJP 10.   

India Today-Axis My India's exit polls have projected 78-96 seats for the TDP, while just 55-77 for YSRCP - down from 151 seats in 2019 with nearly 50 per cent vote share. The NDA is predicted to get 98-120, way more than what is required to form the government. 

The BJP is likely to get 4-6 seats - a significant rise considering the saffron party contesting only 10 seats. 

For vote share, the YSRCP is still the single largest party with 44 per cent of votes, two per cent higher than the TDP's 42 per cent. But what may help the NDA trump YSRCP is the votes garnered by the BJP (2 per cent) and Jana Sena (7 per cent).  

The Congress-led INDIA bloc, another force in the state, is projected to get just 0-2 seats. The grand old party is projected to get just 2 per cent of votes. 

For BJP, Daggubati Purandeswari, who was appointed as the party's Andhra unit chief in July 2023, led the charge and she appears to have done well. 

On Saturday, when exit poll numbers were announced for Andhra's 25 Lok Sabha seats, Axis My India's Pradeep Gupta said Jagan made his biggest mistake when he decided to arrest Chandrababu Naidu in September 2023, and that, according to him, changed the elections for YSRCP.

Top psephologist said that whatever brand equity the chief minister had made through his delivery of social welfare schemes, that all went away after the Andhra CID arrested Chandrababu Naidu. 

Last month, political strategist Prashant Kishor predicted that Jagan was heading for a massive defeat in Andhra.