Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, Odisha and Arunachal vote for new govt

New Delhi, Apr 11: Four states - Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim - are voting today to elect a new state government.

In Andhra Pradesh, strong anti-incumbency, caste and corruption are the major factors that could determine the outcome of the elections to Lok Sabha and the state assembly as over 3.93 crore voters get to exercise their franchise.

This is the first general election in the state after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014.

Polling for all 175 assembly seats will be held today. There are 2,118 candidates for the state polls.

Strong anti-incumbency, caste and corruption are the major factors that could determine the outcome of the elections to Lok Sabha and the state assembly as over 3.93 crore voters get to exercise their franchise.

TDP chief and CM N Chandrababu Naidu will be seeking election from Kuppam, while his son Nara Lokesh is making his electoral debut from Mangalagiri. YSR Congress chief Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, an aspirant for the CM's post, is fighting from his family's pocketborough Pulivendula.

In 2014, the TDP won 101, YSRC 68, BJP four, Navodayam Party one and an Independent one in the state polls. In Lok Sabha seats, the TDP bagged 15, YSRC eight and BJP two.

Sikkim

The polling for the 32 Assembly seats in Sikkim has also begun at 7 am, with a total of 150 candidates in the fray. The voting will conclude at 5 pm at 567 polling stations spread over four districts in Sikkim.

Apart from the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front and opposition party Sikkim Krantikari Morcha, this time there is another political outfit in the fray. Former footballer Bhaichung Bhutia's Hamro Sikkim Party is hoping for a good debut. Bhutia himself is contesting in two Assembly seats. In 2014, the Sikkim Democratic Front won 22 seats while the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha had bagged 10 seats.

Odisha

Voting is under way in 28 out of 147 Assembly seats. Over 60 lakh voters will exercise their franchise to choose among 191 candidates. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has won four consecutive terms in office. However, this time he is facing a strong anti-incumbency wave. In 2014, the Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal won 118 Assembly seats while the Congress and BJP bagged 16 and 10, respectively. Three seats went to Independents and others.

Arunachal Pradesh

Arunachal Pradesh which has 60 assembly seats will witness a triangular contest between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress and the People's Party of Arunachal (PPA).

The state will witness a triangular contest between the incumbent BJP, the PPA and the Congress. The current Chief Minister (CM) Pema Khadu although is leading the BJP government in Arunachal Pradesh, he has switched his loyalties two times after becoming the CM. Khadu, who started with the Congress, changed his affiliation later to the People's Party of Arunachal, eventually coming the BJP fold. The CM will contest the assembly elections from Mukto.