Election Results 2022: Parties gear up for counting of votes in 5 states, all eyes on Uttar Pradesh

Counting of votes: More than 50,000 officials have been deployed for the counting of votes in the five states where assembly polls were held recently. The counting will begin at 8 am in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Manipur and Punjab, following COVID-19 guidelines.

ASSEMBLY ELECTION 2022: FULL COVERAGE

The assembly polls in these five states were held in seven phases between February 10 and March 7. Nearly 1,200 counting halls have been set up where results will be recorded from electronic voting machines (EVMs). 

Uttar Pradesh

Counting in all the 75 districts of the state will begin at 8 am. The postal ballots will be counted first, and then the votes polled in the EVMs will be counted. 

Apart from this, VVPAT (Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail) slips of five machines will be counted in every assembly constituency.  Video and static cameras have been installed at all the counting centres. Adequate AROs (Assistant Returning Officers) have been deployed in every assembly constituency for interruption-free counting. A three-layer security set-up has been made comprising of central police forces, PAC (Provincial Armed Constabulary) and the state police. 

Uttar Pradesh ELECTION 2022: FULL COVERAGE

Almost all the exit polls have predicted that the BJP will return to power. They have forecast an increase in Samajwadi Party's tally but not enough to form the government. The exit polls have forecast double-digit numbers for the BSP and single-digit count for Congress. Both the SP and BSP have dismissed the exit polls, claiming that they would win the poll comfortably and form their government in the state, which has a 403-member assembly. 

The voting for the politically-important state was done in seven rounds starting February 10. 

Uttarakhand

Counting of votes for the state's 70 assembly seats will begin at 8 am. Over 65 percent of polling had been recorded in the Uttarakhand Assembly Polls held on February 14.
        
While many exit polls have given either the BJP or Congress a majority in Uttarakhand, several of them have predicted a close fight between the two major players or a hung assembly - a scenario in which the role of winning independents and candidates of regional outfits like the AAP, SP, BSP and UKD will become significant in government formation.

Uttarakhand ELECTION 2022: FULL COVERAGE

The BJP and Congress are locked in straight contests on 40 to 45 seats, while the regional outfits make the fight triangular on 25-30 seats. Though the BJP and Congress have exuded confidence of winning a clear majority, their leaders have held several closed-door meetings among themselves over the last few days to deal with different scenarios that they may confront after the poll results. The major parties are also keeping an eye on rebels who entered the fray as independents against their official nominees. Thirteen rebels from the BJP and six from the Congress contested this time.
  
The BJP had won 57 out of the total 70 assembly seats in the state in 2017, while the Congress had won just 11 seats. Matching its landslide victory of the last polls and retaining power for a second consecutive term is the BJP's biggest challenge in Uttarakhand against a resurgent Congress trying to stage a comeback.

Punjab 

The stage is set for counting of votes for 117 assembly seats in Punjab where the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP has emerged as a major contender while the Congress is seeking to retain power in the multi-cornered contest.

Various exit polls have predicted that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will form the next government in Punjab but a few have also forecast a hung assembly in the state which had witnessed a high-stakes contest on February 20. Counting of votes will start at 8 am at 117 centres in 66 locations. A total of 1,304 candidates, including 93 women and two transgenders, were in the fray.

Punjab ELECTION 2022: FULL COVERAGE
           
The state recorded voter turnout of 71.95 per cent. It was the lowest percentage as compared to the voting percentage observed in three previous assembly elections. In the 2017 Punjab assembly polls, the voting percentage recorded was 77.40. The percentage in 2007 and 2012 was 75.45 and 78.20 respectively. In the 2002 elections, the voting percentage was 65.14.
           
Though various exit polls predicted that the Congress would not be able to form the government for the second time in a row, Punjab Congress leaders have insisted that their party would secure victory. AAP's chief ministerial face and state unit head Bhagwant Mann has also expressed confidence that his party would form the next government in the state.

In the 2017 Punjab assembly polls, the Congress had ended the SAD-BJP combine ten year regime by bagging 77 seats out of the total 117-assembly segments in the state. The AAP had managed to get 20 seats, while the SAD-BJP had won 18 seats and two seats went into the kitty of the Lok Insaaf Party.

Manipur

With exit polls predicting it to win the Manipur assembly elections 2022, a confident BJP is looking forward to the counting of votes, even as a hopeful Congress looks to prevent its rival from returning to power in the state.

Manipur ELECTION 2022: FULL COVERAGE

Various exit polls have predicted a win for the BJP in the state with the party slated to secure seats ranging from 23 to 43, while the Congress has been predicted to win between four and 17 seats. NPP is also predicted to win 4-14 seats while the NPF, an ally of the BJP, is expected to win 2-8 seats.

Goa 

Counting of votes following the February 14 assembly elections will begin at 8 am.

In the 2017 polls, despite winning 17 seats, Congress could not come to power as the BJP, which had bagged 13 seats, allied with some independents and regional parties to form the government under Manohar Parrikar.

Goa ELECTION 2022: FULL COVERAGE

Goa had witnessed a multi-cornered contest with the Trinamool Congress, Aam Aadmi Party, Shiv Sena-NCP joining the fray along with key contestants the BJP and Congress. The 2022 assembly elections were the first to be held after the demise of Manohar Parrikar, the tallest BJP leader in the state, who served four terms as chief minister.

In the 2022 elections, the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party had joined hands with the Trinamool Congress, while the Goa Forward Party had a pre-poll alliance with the Congress. The NCP and Shiv Sena were hoping for an alliance with the Congress, but entered the fray together after the grand old party gave them a cold shoulder.