BJP: Modi versus None had clicked with voters

New Delhi: With the bitterly fought 2019 electoral battle ending on Sunday and the verdict just four days away, a confident BJP claimed that its ‘Modi Vs None’ campaign had “perfectly clicked” among voters.

Exit poll predictions, with most of them seem to be favouring the BJP’s poll slogan ‘ Phir Ek Baar Modi Sarkaar (Modi once again),’ left the party leaders upbeat, especially the party’s projected performance in West Bengal, where the BJP and the state’s ruling TMC had engaged into the most bitter fight.

Unlike the 2014 ‘NaMo wave,’ the BJP poll strategists had been claiming that there is a “strong undercurrent” this time in both Mr Modi and the NDA’s favour, which will negate all debates and opinions against the BJP led NDA’s second term. BJP president Amit Shah had been claiming that his party will cross the 300th mark this time.  

However, Uttar Pradesh with largest number of parliamentary seats, where the BJP had won 71 out of total seats in 2014, most poll predictions showed the caste combination of SP-BSP-RLD alliance giving the BJP tough fight. But some predictions showed the BJP led NDA comfortably ahead of the SP-BSP-RLD in the state.

Along with West Bengal, exit poll predictions showed the BJP gaining significantly in Naveen Patnaik led BJD ruled Odisha.

In Kerala, where politics is dominated either by the Left or the Congress, some predictions showed the Lotus blooming and BJP’s vote share increasing significantly.

The predictions showed minor losses to the BJP-Shiv Sena ruling alliance in Maharashtra but still way ahead of the UPA.

Other than the leadership issue, which the BJP had claimed was lacking in the opposition camp, its poll strategy focused on “pro-incumbency” in favour of the incumbent government and interweaving ‘nationalsim’ and development planks, with ‘nationalism dominating more during its campaigning. For the BJP, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity graph, a fractured opposition and the saffron camp’s cadre and supporters strength and its nationalism plank went in its favour.

This time the BJP fielded candidates on 437 parliamentary seats, the highest number of seats the party has contested so far. In 2014, the BJP had contested on 427 seats and won 282 of them, while the Congress had fielded candidates in 450 seats and bagged just 44.

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