Seraikella Assembly Election Result 2024: Initial trends show JMM's Ganesh Mahali leading by 9,823 votes, with BJP candidate and former Chief Minister Champai Soren in second place. The vote counting for the Jharkhand Assembly elections began at 8 am on Saturday, with the Seraikella constituency emerging as a key focus. This constituency, which was part of the first phase of voting on November 13, has become the center of a high-stakes battle ahead of the 2024 elections. The contest is marked by a fierce rivalry between former allies Champai Soren and Ganesh Mahali, who now represent opposing parties. Soren, a prominent leader of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and former Chief Minister of Jharkhand, has made a surprising shift to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), aiming to leverage his influence among tribal voters in this reserved seat. On the other hand, Mahali, who contested the 2014 and 2019 elections as a BJP candidate, was denied a ticket this time and switched to JMM, the very party he had previously opposed. This intense rivalry, fueled by narrow margins in past elections, is set to make Seraikella one of the most closely watched contests in the state.
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Initial trends show JMM's Ganesh Mahali leading by 9,823 votes, with BJP candidate and former CM Champai Soren in second place.
Counting for votes begins for the Seraikella Assembly Elections
The tribal-majority constituency of Seraikella, which has seen tight contests between JMM and BJP since Jharkhand’s formation in 2000, is poised for a dramatic showdown. Soren, with his deep-rooted support base in the region, will try to leverage the BJP's resources and development promises to secure victory, while Mahali, backed by JMM, will look to draw tribal support with his strong grassroots presence. Both candidates have strong connections with the local Oraon and Munda tribes, and the battle for this crucial vote bank will likely decide the outcome. With both leaders having a history of narrow defeats and strong local backing, the 2024 election is shaping up to be a high-stakes contest that will captivate the political landscape in Jharkhand.
What happened in the 2019 and 2014 Assembly Elections?
In the 2019 Seraikela Assembly Election, Champai Soren of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) won the seat with 1,10,249 votes, securing around 46.5% of the total vote share. His main rival, Ganesh Mahali of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), garnered 95,887 votes, or about 42.4% of the vote share, losing by a narrow margin of just 1,115 votes. This tight contest reflected the strong rivalry between the two parties, with Mahali emerging as a formidable contender despite JMM’s victory.
In the 2014 Seraikella Assembly Election, Champai Soren (JMM) once again defeated Ganesh Mahali (BJP) by a similarly narrow margin. Soren secured 1,10,125 votes (approximately 44.7% of the vote share), while Mahali received 95,887 votes (around 39.2%). The intense competition between the two candidates has been a hallmark of the constituency’s political landscape in recent years.
Jharkhand Assembly Elections
The elections took place in two phases, on November 13 and November 20. According to the Election Commission of India's data, about 2.60 crore electors, including 11.84 lakh first-time voters and 1.13 lakh persons with disabilities, third-gender individuals, and senior citizens over 85, were eligible to exercise their franchise. The BJP, which lost power to the JMM-led alliance in Jharkhand in 2019, is looking to reclaim its position in the tribal-dominated state.
In 2019, the ruling JMM-led alliance bagged 47 seats, wresting power from the saffron party in the state. The JMM had secured 30 seats, while the Congress bagged 16, and the RJD one seat. The BJP had managed to win 25 seats, JVM-P three, AJSU Party two, and the CPI-ML and NCP one each, besides two Independents emerging victorious.
