The Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections, set to coincide with the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, are slated for May 13, 2024, as announced by the Election Commission of India (ECI) on March 16. Simultaneous polling for both the Assembly and Lok Sabha will take place on the same date, with the counting of votes scheduled for June 4, 2024.
The electoral landscape in Andhra Pradesh is poised for a three-way battle, with the ruling YSR Congress Party, led by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, facing off against a three-party alliance comprising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Telugu Desam Party (TDP), and Jana Sena. The Congress, now under the leadership of Jagan’s sister, YS Sharmila, also enters the fray, adding further complexity to the political contest.
Under the TDP-Jana Sena-BJP alliance, the BJP will contest from 10 seats, Jana Sena from 21, and TDP from the remaining 144 Assembly constituencies. Notably, Jana Sena chief and film actor Pawan Kalyan declared his candidacy for the Assembly election from the Pithapuram constituency on March 14, while TDP has announced 128 candidates thus far. On March 16, the YSRCP unveiled its complete list of 175 candidates for the Assembly polls.
In the previous 2019 Assembly elections, the YSRCP emerged victorious, securing a landslide victory with 151 seats, while the TDP managed to win only 23 seats. YSRCP garnered a substantial vote share of 50%, overshadowing TDP’s 39%. The BJP and Jana Sena trailed behind with vote shares of 0.84% and 5.53%, respectively, while the Congress secured a vote share of 1.17%. Pawan Kalyan’s Jana Sena Party faced significant setbacks, with only one candidate winning the election, who later defected to the YSRCP. Moreover, Pawan Kalyan himself suffered defeat in both seats he contested.
