Three-Way Contest Looms in Andhra Pradesh Assembly Elections

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has unveiled the election schedule for the 175-member Andhra Pradesh Assembly, set to take place concurrently with the general election, on May 13, 2024. Voting for the Lok Sabha will also occur on the same date, with the counting of votes scheduled for June 4, 2024.

The state is gearing up for a three-way political showdown between the ruling YSR Congress Party led by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, the three-party alliance comprising BJP, Telugu Desam Party, and Jana Sena, and the Congress, which is now under the leadership of YS Sharmila.

As part of the TDP-Jana Sena-BJP alliance, the BJP will field candidates in 10 seats, Jana Sena in 21 seats, and TDP in the remaining 144 Assembly constituencies. Noteworthy is the recent announcement by Jana Sena chief and actor Pawan Kalyan that he will contest from the Pithapuram constituency.

In the 2019 Assembly elections, the YSRCP secured a resounding victory with 151 seats, while the TDP managed to win only 23 seats. The YSRCP garnered a vote share of 50%, outperforming the TDP’s 39%, with the BJP’s vote share at 0.84% and Jana Sena’s at 5.53%. The Congress secured a vote share of 1.17%, while Pawan Kalyan’s Jana Sena Party faced a significant defeat.

During the previous elections, the TDP, BJP, and Jana Sena contested independently. Following the TDP’s exit from the National Democratic Alliance in 2018, the TDP-BJP-JSP coalition was reestablished, with efforts led by Pawan Kalyan. The YSRCP, on the other hand, witnessed numerous defections, with several leaders, including sitting MPs, departing due to various factors, including ticket allocation discrepancies.