Karnataka Assembly Election Result 2023 LIVE: The Congress party has surpassed the halfway point, indicating a decisive victory. At 1.22 p.m., Congress+ was in the lead in 133 seats, while the BJP led in 66. A party requires at least 113 seats to form the state’s government.
D K Shivakumar’s victory in Kanakapura with over 70% of the vote was a significant boost for the Congress party. Shivakumar is one of the candidates vying for the position of chief minister. The race is expected to come down to Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah, the former chief minister and leader of the Congress legislative party. According to sources, Siddaramaiah appears to be ahead in the numbers game.
Bye-election results LIVE: UP, Jalandhar poll outcome crucial ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha (newsd.in)
Section 144 has been implemented in Bengaluru, the capital of Karnataka, on the eve of the vote tally for the crucial assembly elections.
The Bengaluru police have tightened restrictions on counting day to prevent untoward occurrences. From 6 a.m. Saturday to 12 a.m. Sunday, Section 144 will be enforced throughout the entire district.
According to reports, the region of the Bengaluru police commissionerate will also prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages.
Karnataka Election 2023: Major Candidates, Voter Turnouts, Exit Polls (newsd.in)
The Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), the Indian National Congress, and the Janata Dal (Secular) are rumoured to have reached out to independents who have a chance of winning the election in order to recruit them to their cause, bearing in mind the possibility of a fragmented vote.
In the outgoing Assembly, the ruling BJP has 116 MLAs, followed by the Congress with 69, the JD(S) with 29, the BSP with one, independents with two, the speaker with one, and six seats that are vacant due to deaths and defections ahead of the elections.
In Karnataka, where it has crossed the halfway mark, the Congress relied extensively on micromanagement, with the central leadership identifying some 70 or so "touch-and-go" constituencies. And the strategist who assisted the party in bolstering its plans was Sunil Kanugolu, who supported the BJP during the 2018 Assembly elections.
Kanugolu joined the Congress structure weeks after Prashant Kishor declined the party's invitation to join. The strategist, who has no online presence, is a reclusive figure in contrast to Kishor, and their modes of operation also differ significantly. In 2014, the two worked together before severing ways.
In the communally polarised Chikamagalur seat, BJP national general secretary and fiery leader C T Ravi, who previously stated that "party tickets will not be decided in the kitchen of senior BJP leader B S Yediyurappa," is trailing.
C T Ravi lags behind Yediyurappa's close aide, H D Thammaiah, who defected from the BJP and joined the Congress.
Karnataka Election Result Live: Congress wins Challakere constituency. T Raghumurthy defeats JD(S) leader Ravish Kumar by 16,450 votes
The party is now leading in 121 seats, comfortably above the half-way mark. The BJP's leads have dropped to 71
Congress will win over 120 seats, says Siddaramaiah in Mysuru
CT Ravi is trailing in Chikkamagaluru. He is one of the hardline Hindutva leaders in Karnataka BJP.
Karnataka Result Live: Congress candidate A R Krishnamurthy, who had lost polls by one vote in 2004, is marching to victory in Kollegal reserve segment in Chamarajanagar district. He has a lead of 17,699 against his BJP rival N Mahesh, the sitting MLA
EC trend for 180 seats: Congress 96, BJP 61 and JD(S) 19
Karnataka Result Live: BJP minister V Somanna is trailing by 2341 votes against Congress candidate Putttarangashetty in Chamarajanagar segment. Somanna is also trailing in Varuna against Siddaramaiah
Karnataka Election Results 2023 LIVE: Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai maintains lead in Shiggaon
BJP candidate Abhay Patil is leading by 5,178 in Belagavi South
Minister B Sriramulu is trailing in Ballari rural
B Y Vijayendra, son of former CM B S Yediyurappa, leads in Shikaripura
BJP leads in Shivamogga segment where the party replaced veteran leader KS Eshwarappa
Congres touches 100 mark in early trends as per Aaj Tak.
Early trends now reversed with home minister Araga Jnanendra trailing in Tirthahalli
Nikhil Kumaraswamy is the son of former CM HD Kumaraswamy
JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy said that he has not been contacted as yet for the formation of the government in case of a cliffhanger. Citing exit polls, HD Kumaraswamy predicted nearly 30-32 seats to JD(S) and a clear edge to the Congress party.
"In the next 2-3 hours, it will become clear. Exit polls show that the two national parties will score in a big way. The polls have given 30-32 seats to JD(S). I am a small party, there is no demand for me...I am hoping for a good development," he said.
The BJP is ahead in 80 seats, the Congress is leading in 100, as per ABP news.
Counting has begun for the eagerly awaited Karnataka Elections. In the meantime, the Congress has begun celebrations in Delhi.