2014 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly election

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2014 Maharashtra Assembly election
Opinion polls
Turnout 63.38% (Increase3.70%)
  Majority party Minority party Third party
  Devendra fadnavis.png Eknath Sambhaji Shinde.jpg Prithviraj Chavan - India Economic Summit 2011.jpg
Leader Devendra Fadnavis[3] Eknath Shinde Prithviraj Chavan[1]
Party BJP SHS INC
Leader’s seat Nagpur South West (Won)[4] Kopri-Pachpakhadi (Won) Karad South[2]
Last election 46 seats 45 seats 82 seats
Seats won 122 63 42
Seat change Increase76 Increase18 Decrease40
Popular vote 14,709,276 10,235,970 9,496,095
Percentage 27.81% 19.45% 17.95%
Swing Increase13.79 Increase3.19 Decrease3.06
  Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party
  Ajit Pawar.jpg Raj at MNS Koli Festival.jpg Indian Election Symbol Kite.svg
Leader Ajit Pawar[5] Raj Thackeray Imtiyaz Jaleel
Party NCP MNS AIMIM
Leader’s seat Baramati[6] Did Not Contest Aurangabad Central (won)
Last election 62 seats 13 0
Seats won 41 1 2
Seat change Decrease21 Decrease12 Increase2
Popular vote 9,122,285 1,665,033 489,614
Percentage 17.24% 3.17% 0.93%
Swing Increase0.87 Decrease2.54 Increase0.92

Results of 2014 Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha Elections

The Indian state of Maharashtra has a bicameral legislature, comprising two houses. The lower house, known as the Legislative Assembly (“Vidhan Sabha” in Marathi), is directly elected by the people and is the more powerful of the two houses. The upper house, known as the Legislative Council (“Vidhan Parishad” in Marathi) is elected indirectly by several specially designated electorates.

The Legislative Assembly has a tenure of five years, at most, and it may be dissolved before time in case the government falls for lack of majority, and nobody else can cobble up a majority. The Assembly has a strength of 288 seats, each seat being a geographical constituency. This page is devoted to the assembly elections which were held in 2014.

Timeline[edit]

The term of the Legislative Assembly of Maharashtra was due to expire on 8 November 2014. By virtue of its powers, duties and functions under Article 324 read with Article 172(1) of the Constitution of India and Section 15 of Representation of the People Act, 1951, the Election Commission of India is required to hold elections to constitute the new Legislative Assembly in the State of Maharashtra during a window of time which is: between six months before and six months after the date of expiry. Elections are almost invariably held before the expiry of the term, rather than afterwards.

The Model Code of Conduct comes into effect the day that the election commission announces the schedule of elections. This happened on 12 September 2014. The required Gazette Notification was issued on 20 September 2014. The legislative assembly election was held on 15 October 2014, in a single phase, to select the 288 members of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in India. The result was announced on 19 October,[7] with the BJP getting a plurality. The term of the current 13th Legislative Assembly is to end on November 9, 2019, as the first meeting of the new house was held on November 10, 2014.

Background[edit]

Following the 2009 Maharashtra State Assembly election, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)—Indian National Congress (INC) alliance won a majority and formed the government.

Alliances[edit]

Following the NCP-INC alliance’s performance in the 2014 Indian general election, the NCP demanded 144 seats to contest and a rotation of the Chief Minister’s post between parties. Both parties held negotiations but failed to reach a conclusion. The INC declared its list of candidates for 118 seats on 25 September without consulting the NCP. Thus, the NCP unilaterally severed its 15-year-old alliance with the INC. The INC later reached out to the Samajwadi Party (SP) to form an alliance.[8][9]

The Shiv Sena and Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) were alliance partners for 25-years – including several smaller parties, such as Republican Party of India (Athavale), Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatna, Rashtriya Samaj Paksha,[citation needed] were also a part. After the general election, the BJP demanded additional seats to contest; initially they requested 144 seats but later reduced their demand to 130 seats. The Shiv Sena offered 119 seats to the BJP and 18 seats to four other allies, keeping 151 to contest itself. After several rounds of negotiations, the parties did not reach a conclusion. Thus the Shiv Sena – BJP alliance ended on the 25 September as well.[9][10]

Parties[edit]

Campaign[edit]

Indian National Congress[edit]

The incumbent Indian National Congress started its campaign on 1 September at Hutatma Chowk, Mumbai. Prithviraj Chavan, the incumbent Chief Minister led the campaign with Narayan Rane heading the Campaign Committee. The party’s advertising campaign began on 20 September.[11][12]

Nationalist Congress Party[edit]

The Nationalist Congress Party began its campaign in Kolhapur on 16 September with national party President Sharad Pawar, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, Maharashtra party President Sunil Tatkare and MP from Kolhapur Dhananjay Mahadik attending the rally.[13]

Bharatiya Janata Party[edit]

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke in South Mumbai’s Mahalaxmi Racecourse after his return from the U.S. for the sixty-ninth session of the United Nations General Assembly.

Shiv Sena[edit]

Shiv Sena started its campaign at Mahalaxmi Racecourse in Mumbai on 27 September, where party leader Uddhav Thackeray addressed its supporters.[14]

Election[edit]

A total of 3255 candidates contested the election.voter turnout was 64%.[15]Voter-verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) along with EVMs was used in 13 constituencies:[16] Wardha, Amravati (2 pockets),[17] Yavatmal, Chandrapur, Nashik (3 pockets), Aurangabad (3 pockets) and Ahmednagar (2 pockets).[18][19][20][21][22][23][16][24]

Surveys and polls[edit]

Exit polls[edit]

Results[edit]

122 63 42 41
BJP SHS INC NCP

Alliance-wise results of Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha Election 2014.png

Detailed Results[edit]

Parties and Coalitions Popular vote Seats
Vote % +/- Contested Won +/-
Bharatiya Janata Party 14,709,276 27.81 Increase13.79 260 122 Increase76
Shiv Sena 10,235,970 19.35 Increase3.09 282 63 Increase18
Indian National Congress 9,496,095 17.95 Decrease3.06 287 42 Decrease40
Nationalist Congress Party 9,122,285 17.24 Increase0.87 278 41 Decrease21
Peasants and Workers Party of India 533,309 1.01 Decrease0.1 51 3 Decrease1
Bahujan Vikas Aaghadi 329,457 0.62 Increase0.16 36 3 Increase1
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen 489,614 0.93 Increase0.91 24 2 Increase2
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena 1,665,033 3.15 Decrease2.56 219 1 Decrease12
Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh 472,925 0.89 Increase0.06 70 1 Steady
Rashtriya Samaj Paksha 256,662 0.49 Increase0.08 6 1 Steady
Communist Party of India (Marxist) 207,933 0.39 Decrease0.21 20 1 Steady
Samajwadi Party 92,304 0.17 Decrease0.57 22 1 Decrease3
Bahujan Samaj Party 1,191,846 2.25 Decrease0.10 280 0 Steady
Swabhimani Paksha 348,906 0.66 Decrease0.12 11 0 Decrease3
Jan Surajya Shakti 154,827 0.29 Decrease0.98 8 0 Decrease2
Independents 2,493,152 4.71 Decrease10.79 1699 7 Decrease17
None of the above 483,459 0.91 288
Total 52,901,326 100.00 288 100.00 ±0
Valid votes 52,901,326 99.93
Invalid votes 35,714 0.07
Votes cast / turnout 52,937,040 63.38
Abstentions 30,591,270 36.62
Registered voters 83,528,310

Region-wise break up[edit]

Region Total seats Bharatiya Janata Party Shiv Sena Indian National Congress Nationalist Congress Party Others
Votes Won Seats Won Votes Won Seats Won Votes Won Seats Won Votes Won Seats Won
Western Maharashtra 70 21,37,749 24 Increase 15 10,84,579 13 Increase 03 6,50,468 10 Decrease 05 19,59,561 19 Decrease 06 04
Vidarbha 62 32,37,918 44 Increase 23 3,19,652 04 Steady 6,65,315 10 Decrease 02 94,152 01 Decrease 10 03
Marathwada 46 13,16,352 15 Increase 09 6,54,971 11 Increase 08 6,60,089 09 Decrease 08 3,76,598 08 Decrease 05 03
Thane+Konkan 39 6,94,146 10 Increase 06 8,33,138 14 Decrease 01 74,715 01 Decrease 04 5,07,033 08 Increase 02 02
Mumbai 36 11,07,422 15 Increase 10 7,26,067 14 Increase 03 2,55,161 05 Decrease 01 00 00 Decrease 03 06
North Maharashtra 35 11,75,399 14 Increase 13 5,39,777 07 Increase 05 5,25,500 07 Decrease 20 3,74,424 05 Increase 01 02
Total[27] 288 96,68,986 122 Increase 76 41,58,184 63 Increase 18 28,31,248 42 Decrease 40 33,11,768 41 Decrease 21 20
Party Western Maharashtra Vidarbha Marathwada Thane+Konkan Mumbai North Maharashtra
Bharatiya Janata Party Increase 15 Increase 23 Increase 09 Increase 06 Increase 10 Increase 13
Shiv Sena Increase 03 Steady Increase 08 Decrease 01 Increase 03 Increase 05
Indian National Congress Decrease 05 Decrease 02 Decrease 08 Decrease 04 Decrease 01 Decrease 20
Nationalist Congress Party Decrease 06 Decrease 11 Decrease 05 Increase 02 Decrease 03 Increase 01
Others Decrease 7 Decrease 11 Decrease 4 Increase 3 Decrease 9 Increase 1

Vidhan Sabha Results

  Bharatiya Janata Party (42%)

  Shiv Sena (21%)

  Indian National Congress (14%)

  Nationalist Congress Party (13%)

  Others/Independents (10%)

Alliance-wise Results
Region Total Seats National Democratic Alliance United Progressive Alliance Others
Western Maharashtra 70 Increase 18 Decrease 11 Decrease 7
Vidarbha 62 Increase 23 Decrease 13 Decrease 11
Marathwada 46 Increase 17 Decrease 13 Decrease 4
Thane +Konkan 39 Increase 5 Decrease 2 Increase 3
Mumbai 36 Increase 13 Decrease 4 Decrease 9
North Maharashtra 35 Increase 18 Decrease 19 Increase 1
Total Increase 94 Decrease 61 Decrease 13

District-wise reults[edit]

Results by constituency[edit]

Government formation[edit]

With the BJP having won a plurality, the NCP offered outside support to the BJP, according to Praful Patel.[28] The NCP offer was read as putting the Shiv Sena under pressure by saying it gave the BJP “mega-clout” in negotiations with the Shiv Sena. Amit Shah did not turn down the offer saying that the party’s parliamentary board, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi would discuss options. Other unnamed BJP members said the Shiv Sena was “a natural fit” with the party. Other unnamed BJP members said they expected the Shiv Sena to seek the post of deputy chief minister as well as more ministers in the national government. Unnamed Shiv Sena spokespeople told NDTV that, as potential kingmaker, Uddhav Thackeray would decide the next steps “in Maharashtra’s best interest.”[29] Finally, BJP and Shiv Sena agreed to come together and form the government.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ “Maharshtra polls: Prithviraj Chavan does a Narendra Modi, projects himself as perfect chief minister”. Daily News and Analysis. September 5, 2014. Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  2. ^ “CM Prithviraj Chavan picks South Karad to contest Maharashtra election”. Times of India. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  3. ^ a b “Race for CM post, says Devendra Fadnavis”. Indian Express. September 20, 2014. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
  4. ^ Ganjapure, Vaibhav (16 October 2014). “South West all set to elect prospective CM”. Times of India. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  5. ^ “In race for CM post, says Ajit Pawar”. Indian Express. September 20, 2014. Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  6. ^ Atikh Rashid (16 October 2014). “Ajit Pawar confident of a victory with huge margin from Baramati”. Indian Express. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  7. ^ “Schedule for General Election to the Legislative Assemblies of Haryana and Maharashtra and bye elections to the Parliamentary/Assembly Constituencies of various States Regarding” (PDF). Election Commission of India. 12 September 2014. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  8. ^ Srivastava, Ritesh K (September 26, 2014). “After split with NCP, Congress may join hands with SP in Maharashtra”. Zee News.
  9. ^ a b “BJP demands President’s rule in Maharashtra, rules out post-poll alliance with NCP – TOI Mobile”. The Times of India Mobile Site. 26 September 2014. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  10. ^ Ikram Zaki Iqbal, Aadil (25 September 2014). “Maharashtra Assembly Election 2014: Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party alliance ends”. India.com.
  11. ^ “Congress Kicks Off Its Campaign For Assembly Polls In Maharashtra”. NDTV. September 2, 2014. Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  12. ^ “Congress ad blitz begins today, with CM Chavan as its face”. Indian Express. September 20, 2014. Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  13. ^ “NCP begins its poll campaign from Kolhapur”. Hindustan Times. September 16, 2014. Archived from the original on September 16, 2014. Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  14. ^ “Uddhav accuses BJP of ‘betrayal’, appeals voters to get a Sena CM”. Hindustan Times. September 27, 2014. Archived from the original on September 27, 2014. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
  15. ^ “Assembly election: Maharashtra registers 64% turnout, Haryana creates history with 76% polling”. Daily News and Analysis. Mumbai. 15 October 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  16. ^ a b “Contacted 90% voters… have done our bit for maximum turnout: Nitin Gadre”. October 15, 2014.
  17. ^ “Instructions on the use of EVMs with Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail system (VVPAT) ECI” (PDF). eci.nic.in/eci_main1. Election Commission of India. 24 September 2014.
  18. ^ “VVPATs to debut in 13 Assembly pockets”. September 29, 2014.
  19. ^ “VVPAT to be used first time in Maharashtra”. The Hindu. September 13, 2014 – via www.thehindu.com.
  20. ^ “Not possible for ECI to put VVPAT system in place for Assembly elections this time: HC”. October 1, 2014.
  21. ^ Ansari, Shahab (30 September 2014). “Funds released for VVPAT, but machines not procured | The Asian Age”. asianage.com. Archived from the original on 2014-10-22.
  22. ^ “Voters enthusiastic about new system | Aurangabad News – Times of India”. The Times of India.
  23. ^ “Admin runs out of time to air awareness clip – Times of India”. The Times of India.
  24. ^ “Nearly 64% vote in Maharashtra, highest-ever 76% turnout in Haryana”. Hindustan Times. Mumbai. 15 October 2014. Archived from the original on October 15, 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2014. voter turnout-64%
  25. ^ “Maharashtra State Assembly Elections 2014 – Exit Poll”. 15 October 2014. Archived from the original on 17 October 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  26. ^ a b c “Exit polls predict BJP surge, party set to form government in Haryana, Maharashtra”. IBN Live. 15 October 2014. Archived from the original on 16 October 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  27. ^ Nandgaonkar, Satish; Hardikar, Jaideep; Goswami, Samyabrata Ray (20 October 2014). “Spoils of five-point duel”. The Telegraph (India). Archived from the original on 2014-12-01. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
  28. ^ “Maha twist: Sharad Pawar’s NCP offers outside support to BJP, Shiv Sena waiting in the wings”. India Today. October 19, 2014.
  29. ^ “BJP’s Amit Shah Places Call to Shiv Sena Chief Uddhav Thackeray: Sources”. NDTV.com.

External links[edit]