Rajasthan vote share: Cong, BJP have similar vote shares

Jaipur, Dec 11: The Congress and its ally Ajit Singh touched the majority mark of 100 seats -- elections were held for 199 of the 200-seat assembly. The BJP has won 73 seats, Mayawati's party has won six.

The Congress managed to significantly increase its vote share as it has secured 39.1 percent vote share, six percent more than what it gained in 2013 when it won a paltry 21 seats. In comparison, the BJP's vote share has gone down from 45.2 percent to 38.6 percent, a difference of 6.6 percent, as it leads in 71 seats.

In 2013, the BJP got 163 seats and a vote share of 46.03%, a jump of about eight percentage points since 2008. The Congress bagged 21 seats with a vote share of 34.27%, a fall of a meagre two percentage points. The BJP had eaten into the votes of smaller parties and independents, whose vote share shrank by eight percentage points to 20.29%.

Thee Congress has improved its vote share from 33.1 per cent in 2013 to 39.2 per cent in 2018. It had managed to get nearly 30 per cent votes despite losing on all seats in last parliamentary elections. Independents have improved their assembly tally from 8.2 per cent to 9.5 per cent, while bagging larger number of seats.

After bypolls in the State, the BJP presently holds 160 seats, the Congress 25, the BSP 2 and the NPP 3 seats.

Yet, a curious trend has emerged in the state in the past 20 years, where neither the BJP nor the Congress has come to power for a consecutive term.

Interestingly, exit polls have predicted a win for the Congress in Rajasthan with around 110 seats in its kitty.