Assembly Elections 2023: These states will go to polls this year

State elections in 2023 will set the stage for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. A total of eight states -- Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Nagaland, Tripura and Meghalaya – are expected to go to the polls this year.

The Karnataka assembly’s tenure ends on May 24 while the rest of the states will need new governments around December this year and January 2024. The Mizoram assembly ends on December 17, and the Chhattisgarh and the Madhya Pradesh legislative assemblies end on January 3 and January 6, 2024.

Finally, the tenures of the Rajasthan and Telangana assemblies will come to an end on January 14 and January 16, 2024.  Assembly elections are expected in November-December in most states while Karnataka may see elections in April-May.

The 224-member Karnataka Legislative Assembly is currently under the control of the Bharatiya Janata Party and is led by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai. The BJP holds 120 seats while the largest opposition Congress has 72 seats. The other major party is the Janata Dal (Secular) with 30 seats. The BJP received 36.2 percent of the vote share compared to the runner-up Congress’s 38 percent in the 2018 election.

The Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly, which has 230 seats, has the BJP in the majority and is led by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The BJP holds 130 seats while the Congress has 96 MLAs. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has only one seat. The BJP received 41 percent of the vote share while the Congress had 40.9 percent. Congress had initially won the state and formed the government. However, defections in 2020 led to the collapse of the Kamal Nath government and the BJP’s return to power.

The Rajasthan Assembly with 200 seats has Congress in the majority. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has 108 members in the assembly while the BJP has 71 MLAs. The other major parties are the Rashtriya Lok Dal, the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist). The BJP received 38.8 percent votes compared to Congress’s 39.3 percent the last time.

There are 90 seats in the Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly led by Chief Minister Bhupesh Bhagel. In the last election, Congress won 71 seats while the BJP could manage only 13. The other major parties are the Janata Congress Chhattisgarh and the BSP. The BJP had got 33 percent of the vote share compared to Congress’ 43 percent.

The 119-member Telangana assembly is currently under the control of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), formerly known as Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS). K Chandrashekar Rao has remained the chief minister since 2014. The BRS holds 104 seats while its main opposition, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, has only seven seats. The other major parties are the INC and BJP. The BRS won 46.9 percent of the vote compared to Congress’s 28.4 percent.

The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) is currently in charge of the 60-member Nagaland assembly. The coalition includes the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP), BJP and the Naga People’s Front (NPF) and is led by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio of the NDPP.

The Tripura assembly has 60 seats and is currently under the control of the BJP. Chief Minister Manik Saha has 33 members in the body while the largest opposition is the CPI(M) with 15 seats. The other major parties are the INC and the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura.

The 60-member Meghalaya assembly is led by Chief Minister Conrad Sangma and his state-level Meghalaya Democratic Alliance. The six-party alliance, including the BJP, holds 43 seats while Mamata Banerjee’s All India Trinamool Congress has 11 seats. Other major parties are the Khun Hynniewtrep National Awakening Movement and the Nationalist Congress Party.