2024 Election Results: BJP Secures Victory with 240 Seats

The results of the Lok Sabha Election 2024 have been declared. The BJP won 240 of the 543 seats, and the Congress secured 99 seats, according to the Election Commission of India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to form the government for a third consecutive term. The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) achieved a majority in the Lok Sabha despite significant losses in three Hindi heartland states. This election was seen as a referendum on Modi’s popularity.

The BJP, whose candidates ran under Modi’s name, won 240 seats but fell short of the 272 majority mark. However, with support from key allies like N Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Nitish Kumar’s JD(U), the NDA crossed the halfway mark. The TDP and JD(U) won 16 and 12 seats in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, respectively.

Opposition Gains

The Congress, part of the opposition INDIA bloc, won 99 seats, up from 52 in 2019. This gain cut into the BJP’s share in Rajasthan and Haryana. The Samajwadi Party bolstered the INDIA bloc’s performance in Uttar Pradesh with 37 seats. Additionally, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), another key opposition member, won 29 seats in West Bengal, improving from 22 in 2019.

Among Leaders Who Won by Biggest Margins

In the Lok Sabha Elections 2024, at least four BJP leaders clinched major victories with the largest margins. Shankar Lalwani, the MP from Indore, won with a staggering margin of over 11.72 lakh votes.

Following closely, Home Minister Amit Shah, former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and BJP Gujarat leader CR Patil each led their constituencies by more than seven lakh votes.

CR Patil, a three-term MP from Navsari in Gujarat, surpassed his previous record with a margin of 7,67,000 votes. Shivraj Singh Chouhan led with a margin exceeding 7,96,000 votes, and Amit Shah led in Gandhinagar by over 7,37,000 votes. Congress’s Rakibul Hussain was ahead in Dhubri, Assam, with more than 7,36,000 votes.

Congress Gains

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi contested from Raebareli and Wayanad, securing victories in both with over 3,50,000 votes each. He surpassed his mother Sonia Gandhi’s margin in Raebareli. In other notable leads, BJP’s Hemang Joshi was ahead by over 5,82,000 votes in Vadodara, and Mahesh Sharma led by 5,57,000 in Noida.

Modi’s Third Term

Narendra Modi is set to be sworn in as Prime Minister for a record third term after the BJP-led NDA secured a simple majority in the 543-member Lok Sabha. However, the results announced on June 4 revealed that the NDA did not achieve the landslide victory predicted by most exit polls.

According to the Election Commission of India, the NDA secured 295 seats. The opposition INDIA bloc bagged 231 seats, defying exit poll predictions. A party or coalition must win at least 272 seats to form a government at the Centre.

Historical Context

Jawaharlal Nehru was the only Prime Minister to have served three terms in office before Modi. Nehru held the position for 16 years and 286 days, from 1947 until 1964, after the Congress party’s victories in the general elections of 1951-52, 1957, and 1962.