Senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda has successfully retained his Garhi Sampla-Kiloi seat in Rohtak district, defeating BJP rival Manju by a margin of 71,465 votes. Speaking to reporters earlier in the day, Hooda confidently stated that the Congress party is poised to form the government in Haryana on its own.
"The Congress will get a majority," Hooda said, dismissing any possibility of requiring outside support. He attributed the party's success to key leaders, saying, "The credit will go to Rahul Gandhi ji, Mallikarjun Kharge ji, Priyanka Gandhi ji, and other leaders. But the real credit goes to the people of Haryana."
As of the latest trends available on the Election Commission's website, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was leading/winning 50 seats, crossing the majority mark in the 90-member Assembly. The Congress, meanwhile, was ahead or had won in 35 seats, followed by Independents on three seats, and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) each leading on one seat.
Bhupinder Hooda Emerged Most Popular For Haryana CM Post In Survey
Amid exit polls projecting a strong performance by the Congress in the 2024 Haryana Assembly elections, Bhupinder Singh Hooda has emerged as the top choice for the Chief Minister’s post. According to a survey conducted by India Today-CVoter, Hooda garnered 30.8 per cent of the votes, positioning him as the most favoured candidate. BJP leader and incumbent Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini followed with 22.1 per cent support.
Other contenders included Congress leaders Deepender Singh Hooda (9.5 per cent), Kumari Selja (4.9 per cent), and Union Minister and former Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who was preferred by only 4.5 per cent of the surveyed voters.
The survey revealed that Hooda's popularity was stronger among male voters, with 32.6 per cent supporting him for the top post, compared to 28.9 per cent of female voters. Meanwhile, Saini was backed by 22.5 per cent of men and 21.7 per cent of women. Notably, 20 per cent of men and 24.6 per cent of women expressed a preference for a new face as Chief Minister.
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Haryana Election 2024
The Election Commission recorded a voter turnout of 67.90 per cent in the state, slightly lower than the 68.31 per cent turnout in the 2019 assembly polls. The voter turnout for the recent 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Haryana was 64.8 per cent.
Among the districts, Sirsa reported the highest voter turnout at 75.36 per cent, with Ellenabad assembly seat in Sirsa recording over 80 per cent turnout. Faridabad district saw the lowest voter turnout at 56.49 per cent, according to Chief Electoral Officer Pankaj Agarwal.
With the electoral battle in Haryana heating up, all eyes are on the final results as both the BJP and Congress vie for control of the state government.