On May 10th, over 5.2 crore voters in Karnataka will cast their votes to elect a new government. The election has been marked by an intense and often bitter campaign between three key players: the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Indian National Congress (Congress), and the Janata Dal (Secular) (JD(S)).
A total of 5,31,33,054 electors are eligible to cast their votes in 58,545 polling stations across the state, where 2,615 candidates are in the fray for the 224-member Karnataka Assembly. Among the electors, 2,67,28,053 are male, 2,64,00,074 female, and 4,927 “others”, while among the candidates 2,430 are male, 184 female, and one from the third gender.Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged people to support the BJP in making Karnataka the number one state, saying its “double engine sarkar” and “decisive focussed and futuristic approach” could contribute to the state’s growth and economy. Meanwhile, the Congress claimed that it drove a positive and development-centric campaign with a vision for the Kannadigas while the BJP’s aim was to “distract, divide and deceive” the people. The JD(S) led by former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda was seen putting all its might into campaigning, wanting to emerge as “king” and not “Kingmaker”.As many as 1.56 lakh police personnel will be deployed across Karnataka for the Assembly polls, with 304 deputy superintendents of police (DySP), 991 inspectors, 2,601 sub-inspectors, 5,803 assistant sub-inspectors, 46,421 head constables/police constables, and 8,500 homes guards and police personnel from neighbouring states being mobilised. In addition, 650 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and state armed police would be deployed.
The election has been closely watched as it is seen as a barometer of the popularity of the BJP and the Congress ahead of the 2019 general elections. The BJP is hoping to wrest the state from the Congress, which has been in power for the past five years. The JD(S) is expected to play a crucial role in the event of a hung assembly, with both the BJP and the Congress courting its support. The results will be announced on May 15th.