Karnataka Election Result 2023 updates: Congress gets absolute majority as it unseats BJP from power

Congress clinched victory over 103 seats and lead on 33 more as the counting of votes continued. BJP has till now won 50 seats and is leading on 14 others. So far, Congress has secured 43.11 per cent of the total vote share. 

lAccording to the latest ECI data, Congress up in 137 constituencies as it leads in 101 seats and wins 36 seats. BJP leading in 45 seats, wins 17 seats.

Congress leader and former Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah exuded confidence in getting more than 130 seats in the elections, as the early trends suggest that the party will likely form government in the southern state. 

"We will cross 130 seats also, it is a big victory of Congress party. People of Karnataka wanted a change because they were fed up with the BJP govt. BJP spent a lot of money on Operation 'Kamala'. Padyatra of Rahul ji helped as well in enthusing cadre of party," he said.

Congress vote share soared to 43% as the party has won 4 seats, and leads in 129 others. Meanwhile BJP's vote share plummets to 35.8% as the party leads in 64 seats, according to the Election Commission data.

Congress leads in 128 seats in Karnataka, whereas BJP ahead in 67 seats. Janata Dal (Secular) leading in 22 constituencies.

BJP leader and incumbent Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai admits defeat, says the party will introspect once the final results are out.

"In spite of a lot of efforts put in by PM & BJP workers, we've not been able to make the mark. Once the full results come we'll do a detailed analysis. We take this result in our stride to come back in Lok Sabha elections," Karnataka CM Bommai

Congress is on course to become the biggest party in Karnataka. The party has already breached the majority mark in early leads and looks all set to come back to power. 

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Janata Dal-Secular played an important role in forming the government in the Karnataka Assembly elections in 2018. However, this year, it looks highly unlikely the party would be the 'kingmaker'. 

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The BJP is leading in Udupi, Bangalore South and Chincholi. As per media reports, the BJP improved its vote share compared to last time.

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Since 1985, no incumbent party has managed to return to power in Karnataka. The trend is expected to continue this year as well. Congress is comfortably perched atop the seat count and will likely form the government in the state.  

According to latest EC data, Congress leads on 119 seats, BJP on 72, JD(S) on 25 while other parties and independent candidates have managed to usurp eight seats. 

"Congress has the majority. We will have a thumping victory. The slogan of "40 per cent commission government" given by us, was accepted by the public. It was a major issue raised by us to defeat BJP. People accepted it and gave majority to the Congress," says senior Congress leader Sachin Pilot. 

To avoid BJPs horse-trading tactic, Congress is reportedly planning to take its MLAs to Tamil Nadu and is in touch with the ruling DMK party there. 

Former BJP CM BS Yeddyurappa’s son BY Vijayendra is currently leading on the Shikaripura assembly seat by 8,715 votes against Goni Malatesh of Congress, according to EC. 

BJP's Mahesh Tenginkai leads, Congress' Jagadish Shettar trails in the Hubli-Dharwad Central Assembly constituency, as per ECI. Congress: 110, BJP: 74, JD(S): 25

According to EC data, Karnataka CM and BJP leader Basavaraj Bommai is currently leading from the Shiggaon assembly seat. 

Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumar leads in Kanakapura Assembly constituency, BJP's R Ashoka trailing, as per Election Commission. 

According to Election Commission website, of the 101 seats, Congress is currently leading on 57 seats while BJP occupies the second spot with 34 seats. JD(S) is currently leading on 7 seats. 

To avoid any horse-trading, Congress has issued a mandate to its MLAs, asking them to reach Bengaluru today. Karnataka and its resort politics might be the reason for such a step. 

Latest figures state that Congress has breached the majority number of 113 in the early trends, an hour into the counting. 

According to early trends, former chief minister Siddaramaiah and incumbent CM Basavaraj Bommai are leading on their seats in the Karnataka Assembly election result 2023. 

"We are very confident that my father (Siddaramaiah) is going to win in Varuna constituency with a huge margin. Congress will get an absolute majority and will come to power on its own," said Congress leader Yathindra Siddaramaiah.

Though most exit polls had given a commanding majority to Congress, it is BJP that has come out of the blocks sharply. According to various media reports, BJP is leading on 73 seats while Congress is close behind on 66 Assembly seats, according to early trends. Election Commission is yet to tally the figures. 

"Today is a big day for Karnataka as the people's verdict for the state will be out. I am confident that #BJP will win with absolute majority and give a stable government," said Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai, in Hubballi. 

The counting of votes for 224 constituencies at 35 centres across 34 districts in the state began at sharp 8:00 am. The intial trends are expected to follow soon.

Votes will be counted from 8 am in 36 centres across Karnataka. By the afternoon, it will be clear who will be forming the government. 

Karnataka had over 11.71 lakh first-time voters. To encourage young voters to take part in the democratic process, 286 of these polling stations were run by the youngest staff available, in line with the Election Commission of India's (ECI) initiative.

In the state, a total of 737 polling stations based on themes and ethnicity were established.

Congress General Secretary in-charge Communications Jairam Ramesh said, “Congress' victory in Karnataka is PM Modi's defeat because no one campaigned in Karnataka except him. After (BJP's) Karnataka's defeat, Delhi's door is open for Congress in 2024.”

To check the results of the Karnataka Assembly Elections 2023, follow the steps given below:

Visit the official website of the Election Commission of India- https://results.eci.gov.in/

On the homepage, click on ‘General Elections to Assembly Constituency May 2023’

There, the result trends will appear on the screen. 

Karnataka CM Bommai has predicted a comfortable majority for BJP in the election results even as exit polls give Congress an edge. "All the exit polls predicted that Yogi Adityanath will not come back but he came back in Uttar Pradesh. Last time, they (exit polls) predicted only 80 seats for BJP and 107 for Congress but it came reverse... We are confident with our ground reports and we will come with a comfortable majority," Bommai was quoted as saying by ANI.

In the 2018 Karnataka state elections, no party won a clear majority. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the single largest party, winning 104 seats, followed by the Congress with 80 seats and the Janata Dal (Secular) or JD(S) with 37 seats. Additionally, there was one independent member, while the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Karnataka Pragnyavantha Janatha Party (KPJP) each won one seat.

As no party had a majority, the Congress and JD(S) began negotiations to form an alliance. However, the BJP, as the single largest party, staked claim to form the government. B. S. Yediyurappa was appointed Chief Minister, but his government was dissolved within three days as he failed to muster enough support.

The Congress-JD(S) coalition then formed the government, with H. D. Kumaraswamy as Chief Minister. However, the government collapsed 14 months later when 17 ruling coalition legislators resigned and defected to the BJP.

The BJP then won 12 out of 15 seats in the subsequent by-elections held in 2019. In 2021, BS Yediyurappa resigned as Chief Minister, and he was replaced by Basavaraj Bommai of the BJP.

Karnataka recorded a record voter turnout of 73.19 per cent in Assembly Polls conducted Wednesday. "Karnataka has created a new record for itself. Final voter turnout for Karnataka Election 2023 stands at 73.19 per cent," said the Chief Electoral Office, Karnataka. The EC also noted that largely peaceful voting was conducted at the 58,545 polling stations across the state. 

H D Kumaraswamy of Janata Dal Secular (JDS) has stated that both Congress and BJP have approached him to form a post-poll coalition in case of a hung verdict. At the same time, Congress is insisting that the party will definitely reach the majority mark. The majority mark in the 224-seat Karnataka assembly is 113. Congress president DK Shivakumar said, “I do not know about JD(S), let them take their own call. I don't have any backup plan, my only plan is that Congress party will come to power."