Himachal Pradesh Election Results 2017 | BJP Wins In Biggest Mandate Since 1993
Exit polls predict a landslide victory for the BJP in Himachal Pradesh.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Himachal Pradesh Keeps Tradition Intact
Anti-incumbency struck again in Himachal Pradesh as the Bharatiya Janata Party wrested power from the Congress with leads in a majority of seats.
With that, Himachal became the nineteenth state in the country with a BJP or an NDA-led government. BJP won 44 seats - well past the halfway mark of 35 - while the incumbent Congress got 21.
The only minor setback was that the BJP's chief ministerial candidate Prem Kumar Dhumal lost from the Sujanpur constituency. He was defeated by Congress' Rajinder Rana. "In politics, sometimes one wins, sometimes one loses. I was not expecting to lose," Dhumal told wire agency ANI. His personal loss, he added, is not as important as the fact that BJP won the state. This means the BJP may have to hunt for a new face as their CM candidate.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh beat Rattan Singh Pal of the BJP from the Arki constituency by a margin of more than 6,000 votes. He took "full responsibility" of Congress' defeat while conceding the election to BJP.
Singh's son Vikramaditya, who was contesting his first election from his father's old seat rural Shimla, also secured a clear victory over his nearest BJP rival Pramod Sharma.
Acknowledging the party's victory, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that the people of Himachal Pradesh chose to vote for the "path of development". Taking a dig at the Congress, Modi said a government that doesn't bat for development and is embroiled in corrupt practices, is bound to be voted out after five years.
- A huge reversal in the voting pattern was seen in the Mandi district where both Congress and BJP had won 5 seats each back in 2012. This time around, the BJP won 9 seats while the Congress returned empty-handed.
- The Shimla district too saw BJP making inroads with three seats out of eight, improving their tally from one in the previous poll. Congress' tally in Shimla fell to four seats from six in 2012.
- The Chamba district, which was tied in 2012, also saw power swing to the BJP with six out of eight seats.
- Three out of the four seats in Kullu also went to BJP, whereas it had only one in the previous assembly election.
Today's results were the biggest mandate for a single political party in Himachal Pradesh since 1993.
PM Modi Delivers Victory Speech
PM Modi has thanked voters in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh for choosing the "path of development", addressing a media conference at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi.
The way Himachal Pradesh has voted that proves that if you do not develop, if you’re indulged in corruption, and if that is your specialty, then after five years people do not accept you.Prime Minister Narendra Modi
PM Modi Joins Celebrations At BJP HQ
Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at BJP HQ in Delhi, received by BJP President Amit Shah #ElectionResults2017 pic.twitter.com/MOEnKxVSNI
— ANI (@ANI) December 18, 2017
Poll Win Shows Trust In BJP's National Agenda: FM Arun Jaitley
Gratitude to the people of Himachal Pradesh for voting and making BJP win the #HimachalPradeshAssemblyElections2017 Compliments to BJP Karyakartas, @BJP4Himachal @BJP4India & people of the state. Election results show trust of the people in national development agenda of the BJP.
— Arun Jaitley (@arunjaitley) December 18, 2017
Didn't Expect To Lose, Says BJP's CM Candidate
BJP’s chief ministerial candidate Prem Kumar Dhumal said that BJP’s victory in the state is more important than him losing from the Sujanpur constitency.
Personal loss is not of much importance.The gain that victory has brought to state BJP is important. Thankful to people of the state for voting for BJP. In politics, sometimes one wins, sometimes one loses. I was not expecting to lose, I will do an analysis: PK Dhumal #Himachal pic.twitter.com/7UrumoxVhp
— ANI (@ANI) December 18, 2017
As per the last update, Dhumal was trailing by 2,822 votes to Congress’ Rajinder Rana.
Himachal Pradesh Election Results 2017: Tally At 4 PM
Virbhadra Singh Concedes Defeat
Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh has said that he “takes full responsibility” of Congress’ defeat in the northern hill state.
I accept the victory of BJP. I, being the CM, take full responsibility of our performance here. I hope Vikramaditya (Singh) keeps winning in future, like he won today: Virbhadra Singh #HimachalPradesh pic.twitter.com/ImNkW32qdy
— ANI (@ANI) December 18, 2017
Singh has been declared winner from the Arki constituency.
BJP Chief Amit Shah Thanks Himachal Pradesh Voters
Party president Amit Shah has said that the people of Himachal Pradesh are keen to join PM Modi’s journey to development.
He added that the poll results are a "victory of development over dynasty and polarisation”, at a media conference.
The 2/3rd lead in Himachal Pradesh shows that people there want to join PM Narendra Modi in the journey to development: Amit Shah, BJP President #HimachalResults pic.twitter.com/bvySqJyFBZ
— ANI (@ANI) December 18, 2017
Prime Minister Tweets Post Election Results
हिमाà¤à¤² पà¥à¤°à¤¦à¥à¤¶ मà¥à¤ लहराया à¤à¤®à¤², विà¤à¤¾à¤¸ à¤à¥ हà¥à¤ à¤à¤µà¥à¤¯ à¤à¥à¤¤à¥¤
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 18, 2017
I bow to the people of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh for their affection and trust in BJP. I assure them that we will leave no stone unturned in furthering the development journey of these states and serve the people tirelessly.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 18, 2017
Himachal Pradesh Election Results 2017: Tally At 3 PM
Himachal Pradesh Election Results 2017: Seat Share At 2:10 PM
Virbhadra Singh Extends Lead In Arki
Himachal Pradesh Election Results 2017: Tally At 1:30 PM
Virbhadra Singh's Son Vikramaditya Leads In Rural Shimla
UP CM Yogi Adityanath On BJP's Win
BJP's CM Candidate Dhumal Still Trails In Sujanpur
Celebrations Begin At BJP's Headquarters
Celebrations at #BJP Headquarters in #NewDelhi as the party heading towards majority in both #Gujarat & #HimachalPradesh #ElectionResults2017 pic.twitter.com/lVwqBhkYRe
— Doordarshan News (@DDNewsLive) December 18, 2017
Himachal Election Results 2017: Vote Share Pattern
Himachal Election Results 2017: Markets Hold On To Gains
The victories in Gujarat and Himachal are significant as it shows that voters have put their faith in the BJP, despite the short-term pains that they went through because of reforms. This win is also pointing to a victory in 2019 for the ruling party. This is very positive for the country, economy and investors.Porinju Veliyath, MD, Equity Intelligence India
Himachal Election Results 2017: Tally At 12 Noon
Himachal Election Results 2017: CM Virbhadra Singh Leads In Arki
Himachal Election Results 2017: Tally At 11:20 AM
Himachal Election Results 2017: A Wake Up Call, Says IIFL's Nirmal Jain
#ElectionResults2017 | BJP winning polls will be taken positively but it's a wake up call at the same time, says IIFL Chairman @JainNirmal pic.twitter.com/1CMQiUBbQ3
— BloombergQuint (@BloombergQuint) December 18, 2017
Himachal Election Results 2017: Celebrations At BJP Headquarters
Delhi: Party workers celebrate at party HQ, as trends indicate BJP's victory in both Gujarat & Himachal Pradesh #GujaratVerdict #HimachalPradeshElections2017 pic.twitter.com/BDJxPcB6hN
— ANI (@ANI) December 18, 2017
Himachal Election Results 2017: Market At Day's High
Himachal Election Results 2017: Tally At 11:00 AM
Himachal Election Results 2017: PM Modi Arrives At Parliament
A victorious Prime Minister @NarendraModi arrives at Parliament. #ElectionResults2017 pic.twitter.com/ZleyyaK3cC
— BloombergQuint (@BloombergQuint) December 18, 2017
Himachal Election Results 2017: Tally At 10:25 AM
Himachal Election Results 2017: CM Candidate Prem Kumar Dhumal Trails
Himachal Election Results 2017: Market Recovers From Day's Low
Himachal Election Results 2017: BJP Extends Lead
Watch Live: Analysis Of Gujarat And Himachal Pradesh Election Trends
An Hour And A Half Into Counting, What Do You Think?
Will BJP sweep Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh elections? #GujaratVerdict
— BloombergQuint (@BloombergQuint) December 18, 2017
Live Updates: https://t.co/MvSusbsVdT
Himachal Election Results 2017: Vikramaditya Singh Leads
Himachal Election Results 2017: Tally At 9:35 AM
Himachal Election Results 2017: Tally At 9:25 AM
Himachal Election Results 2017: Tally At 9:20 AM
Markets Open Weak On Counting Day
India’s equity markets slumped with the rupee and government bonds slid as early trends from the Gujarat elections indicated a close race.
Himachal Election Results 2017: Tally At 9:10 AM
Himachal Election Results 2017: Trends At 9 AM
Himachal Election Results 2017: Early Trends Show Leads For BJP
Himachal Election Results 2017: SGX Nifty Trades With Gains
Himachal Election Results 2017: Counting Underway
Counting of postal ballots underway; visuals from a counting center in #Shimla's Kasumpti #HimachalPradeshElections pic.twitter.com/jkFIi3Gtmq
— ANI (@ANI) December 18, 2017
The Key Battles
Sujanpur: Located in his backyard of Hamirpur, Prem Kumar Dhumal will test waters from Sujanpur against his one-time protege - Congress’ Rajinder Rana. Rana, the incumbent MLA, contested the 2012 polls as an independent, defeating the Congress candidate by more than 14,000 votes.
Arki: 83-year old Virbhadra Singh, popularly known as Raja Sahab amongst the locals, will be seeking a record seventh-term as chief minister from Arki.
Shimla (Rural): Relaxing the ‘one family, one ticket’ policy, the Congress has fielded Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh’s son Vikramaditya Singh from Shimla (Rural) – a seat currently held by his father. He will be up against BJP candidate Pramod Sharma.
Exit Polls Project BJP Landslide
Most exit polls have projected a landslide win for the BJP and a return for 73-year old Prem Kumar Dhumal as chief minister for the third time.
Virbhadra Singh's Fate Hangs In The Balance
Amidst all the hullabaloo surrounding Gujarat, the fact that nearly 40 lakh voters have sealed the fate of 337 candidates for 68 assembly seats in Himachal Pradesh has almost gone unnoticed.
For a state that has not elected an incumbent government since 1990, exit polls predicting a landslide victory for the Bharatiya Janata Party should come as no surprise.
The incumbent Congress party’s star power was largely missing in the Himachal Pradesh campaign with the state’s 83-year-old Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh leading the charge. Singh himself is facing a slew of corruption and money laundering allegations.