The Bhokar Assembly constituency, located in the Nanded district of Maharashtra, is currently witnessing a heated contest in the 2024 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly elections, with voting set for November 20. This general seat, part of the Nanded Lok Sabha constituency, is historically significant, with Shankarrao Chavan's legacy dominating the area. Sreejaya Chavan, granddaughter of Shankarrao Chavan and daughter of former CM Ashok Chavan, is contesting on a BJP ticket, while her opponent, Tirupati (Pappu) Kondagir, is running for Congress. Kondagir, a former ally of Ashok Chavan, chose to stay with Congress when Chavan joined the BJP.
The Chavan family has been a major political force in Bhokar, with Shankarrao winning the seat multiple times. However, with Ashok Chavan's recent defection to the BJP, the family faces a new challenge in retaining the seat. Other key players in the constituency include the Congress, BJP, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).
Key candidates
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fielded Ashok Chavan's daughter Sreejaya Chavan from the Bhokar Assembly constituency, while Congress pitted Tirupati Baburao Kadam Kondekar.
Bhokar Constituency Demographic Profile
As per data from the Election Commission, there were 2,07,385 voters in the Bhokar constituency during the 2019 Assembly Elections. Out of this, 1,09,312 were male and 96,974 were female voters. Three voters belonged to the third gender in the constituency. 1,096 postal votes were cast in the constituency. The number of service voters in Bhokar in 2019 was 231 (228 men and 3 women).
In 2014, the total number of voters in the Bhokar constituency was 18,57,11. Out of this, 99,815 voters were male and 84,945 were female voters. There were 951 valid postal votes in the constituency. The number of service voters in Bhokar in 2014 was 94 (74 men and 20 women).
When will Bhokar vote?
The Maharashtra Assembly elections 2024 will occur in a single phase on November 20. The Bhokar constituency will go to the polls on November 20.
When will the results be declared?
The result for Bhokar will be declared on November 23, along with the other 287 constituencies in Maharashtra.
What happened in the Bhokar 2019 and 2014 Assembly Elections?
In the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly Elections, Congress candidate Ashokrao Shankarrao Chavan won the seat with a margin of 97,445 votes (47.28%). He was polled 1,40,559 votes with a vote share of 67.78%. He defeated BJP leader Shrinivas alias Bapusaheb Deshmukh Gorthekar, who got 43,114 votes (20.79%). VBA leader Ayalwad Namdev Nagorao stood third with 17,813 votes (8.59%), and SBBGP candidate Bhagwan Bhimrao Kadam was in the fourth position with 2,069 votes (1%). The total number of valid votes polled was 2,07,382 (74.33%).
In the 2014 Maharashtra Assembly Elections, Congress leader and wife of Ashok Chavan, Ameeta Ashokrao Chavan, won the seat. She was polled 10,0781 votes with a vote share of 54.43%. BJP candidate Dr Madhavrao Kinhalkar got 53,224 votes (28.5%) and was the runner-up. Chavan defeated Kinhalkar by a margin of 47,557 votes (25.78%). The total number of valid votes polled in this constituency was 1,83,782 (70.47%). Shiv Sena candidate Baban Alias Ramrao Barse came in third with 12,760 votes (6.89%), and NCP candidate Deshmukh Dharmraj Ganpatrao was in the fourth position with 7,809 votes (4.22%).
