2008 Karnataka Legislative Assembly election

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2008 Karnataka Legislative Assembly election
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All 224 Karnataka Legislative Assembly constituencies
113 seats needed for a majority
Turnout64.68 pp (Decrease2.svg 0.47 pp)
 Majority partyMinority partyThird party
 
The Chief Minister of Karnataka, Shri B.S. Yediyurappa meeting with the Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, Dr. Montek Singh Ahluwalia to finalize annual plan 2008-09 of the State, in New Delhi on August 12, 2008 (1) (cropped).jpg
Shri Mallikarjun Kharge takes over the charge of Union Minister for Railways, in New Delhi on June 19, 2013 (cropped) 2.jpg
HDK Minister of Steel.jpg
Leader B. S. Yeddyurappa Mallikarjun Kharge H. D. Kumaraswamy
Party BJP INC JD(S)
Leader's seat Shikaripura Chittapur Ramanagara
Last election796558
Seats won1108028
Seat changeIncrease2.svg 31Increase2.svg 15Decrease2.svg 30
Popular vote8,857,7549,091,3644,959,252
Percentage33.86%34.76%18.96%
SwingIncrease2.svg 5.53 pp Decrease2.svg 0.51 pp Decrease2.svg 1.81 pp
2008 Karnataka Election Result 2008.png
Chief Minister before election

HD Kumaraswamy
JD(S)

Elected Chief Minister

B. S. Yeddyurappa
BJP

The 2008 Karnataka Legislative Assembly election took place in three phases on 10, 16 and 22 May 2008 in all the 224 assembly constituencies in Karnataka, India. The elections were conducted to elect a Government in the state of Karnataka for the next five years. The votes were counted on 25 May and due to the use of electronic voting machines, all the results were out by the afternoon itself. The Bharatiya Janata Party emerged victorious winning 110 seats. Although the party fell short of a clear majority, it was able to form the government with the support of 6 independents. This was the first time BJP came to power on its own in Karnataka and any south Indian state. [1] [2]

Contents

Background

In the 2004 Karnataka elections, the BJP emerged as the single largest party winning 79 out of the 224 seats. However, the Indian National Congress with 65 members and the Janata Dal (Secular) with 58 members formed a coalition government with Dharam Singh of the Congress as Chief minister. However, in early 2006, the JD(S) withdrew its support to the government and instead formed an alliance with the BJP and H. D. Kumaraswamy of the JD(S) became Chief minister. [3] The arrangement was based on an agreement that Kumaraswamy would be the Chief Minister for the first 20 months and B.S. Yeddyurappa of the BJP would be Chief Minister for the next 20 months.

The alliance between the BJP and the JD(S) collapsed in October 2007 after Kumaraswamy refused to let Yeddyurappa take over as Chief minister as had been agreed upon in 2006. They briefly got together and formed a short-lived government headed by Yeddyurappa in November 2007 but it quickly collapsed due to disagreements over power-sharing. As a result, the state came under the president's rule and new elections were called for. [1]

Schedule

Schedule by Districts 2008 Karnataka Assembly election Schedule - Districts.pdf
Schedule by Districts
Schedule by Seats 2008 Karnataka Assembly election Schedule - Seats.pdf
Schedule by Seats

The Election Commission of India announced that polling would be held in a three phases on 10th, 16th and 22 May and that results would be declared on 25 May.

It also declared that the provisions of the Model Code of Conduct "came into force with immediate effect" with the said announcement. [4]

EventDate
Phase-IPhase-IIPhase-III
No. of Assembly Constituencies896669
Date for nominations16 April 200822 April 200826 April 2008
Last date for filing nominations22 April 200829 April 20083 May 2008
Date for scrutiny of nominations24 April 200830 April 20085 May 2008
Last date for withdrawal of candidatures26 April 20082 May 20087 May 2008
Date of poll10 May 200816 May 200822 May 2008
Hours of poll7:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Date of counting25 May 2008
Date before which the election shall be completed28 May 2008

Campaign

The state was the first in India to vote after the electoral constituencies had been redrawn based on new population data. [2] [1] The BJP campaigned on the high rate of inflation and criticized the national United Progressive Alliance government for being soft on terrorism. The party called on the voters to give the party a chance in Karnataka.

But the main election plank of the party was the betrayal of the JD (S) and the good budgets presented by Yeddyurappa when he was finance minister in the coalition government. [1] The Congress party pledged to reign in prices, improve the infrastructure of the state, and provide a stable government. [5]

Results

Vote share by party
  1. Indian National Congress (34.76%)
  2. Bharatiya Janata Party (33.86%)
  3. Janata Dal (Secular) (18.96%)
  4. Independent (6.92%)
  5. Other (5.50%)

Aftermath

Although the BJP fell 3 seats short of getting an absolute majority, B. S. Yeddyurappa was able to become chief minister with the support of 6 independent members of the assembly. He was sworn in as Chief minister on 30 May 2008 along with a 30 strong Cabinet, which included 5 of the 6 independents who had agreed to back the BJP. [13] Jagadish Shettar was elected speaker on 5 June and a vote of confidence was passed by voice vote on 6 June after the opposition walked out. [14] [15]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "BJP wins Karnataka assembly polls". BBC Online. 26 May 2008. Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  2. 1 2 "BJP creates history in Karnataka, Congress humbled all over". Hindustan Times. 25 May 2008. Retrieved 5 June 2008.[ dead link ]
  3. ↑ "BJP makes southern Indian debut". BBC Online. 3 February 2006. Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  4. ↑ "General Election Karnataka Legislative Assembly 2008 Election Statistics" (PDF). Government of Karnataka. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 February 2021.
  5. ↑ "India's software state votes in high-stakes election". Agence France-Presse. 9 May 2008. Archived from the original on 20 May 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2008.
  6. ↑ "Karnataka 2004". Election Commission of India. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  7. ↑ "LIST OF MEMBERS ELECTED 13TH KARNATAKA LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY". Archived from the original on 19 June 2010. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  8. ↑ "Constituencywise Trends". eciresults.nic.in. Archived from the original on 15 May 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  9. ↑ "Live: Karnataka election results: CM Siddaramaiah loses from Chamundeshwari, close contest in Badami". The Times of India. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  10. ↑ "Karnataka Assembly Election Result 2018 Live: Karnataka Elections Results, Exit Polls Results, Opinion Poll Result". News18.
  11. ↑ "Spotlight on 2 'Other' Candidates as Karnataka Heads for Photo-Finish". 15 May 2018.
  12. ↑ "Karnataka Congress reaches out to independent candidates to keep BJP at bay". 15 May 2018.
  13. ↑ "Yeddy swears by a please-all cabinet". The Economic Times. 31 May 2008. Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  14. ↑ "Karnataka BJP Government To Seek Trust-vote Friday". News Post India. 5 June 2008. Archived from the original on 29 January 2013. Retrieved 5 June 2008.
  15. ↑ "BJP Govt wins trust vote in Karnataka". Hindustan Times. 7 June 2008. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 8 June 2008.
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