BJP's Kumar Bangarappa defeats his brother in Soraba

BJP's Kumar Bangarappa defeated his younger brother Madhu Bangarappa of Janata Dal (Secular) in Soraba assembly constituency. Sons of the former Chief Minister S. Bangarappa locked horns in the assembly election due to the rift in the family. Madhu Bangarappa, JD(S) had won this seat in 2013 with a margin of 21,225 votes while BJP's H. Halappa won this seat in 2008.

Before joining politics, Bangarappa was a movie actor and producer. He was the president of the party's youth wing and in 2013 he was elected as the chief whip of the JD(S).

The former Minister and actor Kumar Bangarappa, had quit the Congress and announced his decision to join the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2017, with his supporters. And he was rewarded with a ticket to contest from Soraba.

Kumar Bangarappa, who won from Sorab in the 1996, 1999 and 2004 elections as the Congress candidate, had a brief stint as Minister of State for Minor Irrigation in the S.M. Krishna government. He and his father became political opponents when the latter joined the Bharatiya Janata Party and contested the 2004 Lok Sabha elections from Shimoga constituency