Post Results: In the state Assembly elections 2020, Arvind Kejriwal of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won from New Delhi with a vote margin of over 46,758 votes.

New Delhi Key Facts and its Top Candidates for Delhi Assembly Election

New Delhi Assembly Constituency (formed during the 2008 delimitation) houses the poshest localities of Delhi. A sizeable population of this assembly constituency is government employees, mostly bureaucrats. Some of the most high profile candidates have fought elections from this constituency including the incumbent Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal (2013 and 2015) and former Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit (2008).

Arvind Kejriwal (Aam Aadmi Party or AAP) has again filed nomination from the New Delhi assembly seat. Congress’ Romesh Sabharwal and BJP’s Sunil Yadav are expected to throw tough challenges to the incumbent MLA of the constituency and Delhi CM in 2020 Delhi Assembly Constituency Election. Ramgulam of BSP is another candidate contesting in the New Delhi Assembly Constituency.

The 2020 New Delhi Assembly Constituency election details:

Date of Election	February 8
Date of Result Announcement	February 11

New Delhi Assembly Constituency: Snapshot

• Delhi’s New Delhi Assembly Constituency was created in 2008 by reorganisation under the Delimitation Commission.

• It is part of the New Delhi Lok Sabha constituency and New Delhi district.

• The New Delhi district serves as India’s capital.

• Pre-Independence Significance: The capital city’s foundation stone was laid during the 1911 Delhi Durbar by the then Emperor of India George V. The inauguration of the new capital (Calcutta was India’s capital during the British Raj until December 1911) was done by Viceroy and Governor-General of India Lord Irwin on February 13, 1931.

• The poshest localities of Delhi are located in the New Delhi assembly constituency. Some of the most important areas in this assembly constituency are President Estate, Connaught Place, Janpath, Central Secretariat, Sarojini Nagar, Bharti Nagar, Gold Link, Lodhi Estate, Pandara Park, Laxmi Bai Nagar, Gole Market, Bhagwan Das Lake, Kidwai Nagar, Jor Bagh, etc.

• New Delhi assembly is home to bureaucrats, government employees, and traders.

• This assembly constituency has its own municipal council (New Delhi Municipal Council or NDMC).

• Arvind Kejriwal shot to prominence in Delhi and national politics after he defeated three-time Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit in 2013 from this constituency.

• A voter-verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) was used along with the EVMs during both 2013 and 2015 assembly elections in New Delhi assembly constituency.

Name of Assembly Constituency	New Delhi
Constituency Type	General (No Reservation)
District Name	New Delhi
Lok Sabha Constituency	New Delhi (after the delimitation of 2008)
Total Registered Voters	1.44 lakh
Total Registered Male Voters	79,047
Total Registered Female Voters	65,461
Total Registered Third Gender Voters	8

Main Rivals of New Delhi Constituency in 2020 Delhi Legislative Assembly Election:

In the 2020 assembly election, the main contest will be between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Indian National Congress (INC) candidates in this constituency.

Political Party Name	Name  of Candidate	Political History
AAP	Arvind Kejriwal	– Two time Chief Minister of Delhi Assembly (2013 and 2015)  – Established Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) along with other Jan Lokpal activists in November 2012.  – He started his active social activism (along with Manish Sisodia and others) in December 1999 by forming a “Parivartan” movement in Delhi’s Sundar Nagar area. At that time, he was working as an Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax Department. He took a sabbatical from work in January 2000 to focus on social works. “Parivartan” movement addressed the grievances of the citizens regarding electricity, social welfare schemes, Public Distribution System, income tax, public works, etc.  – In 2005, Kejriwal along with Sisodia started an NGO called Kabir, which focused mainly on RTI and participatory governance.  – Arvind Kejriwal established the Public Cause Research Foundation in 2006 by donating the prize money of his Ramon Magsaysay Award as seed money.  – Kejriwal shot to prominence in Delhi politics and national politics by protesting against the rampant corruption in the Commonwealth Games in 2010 and later in 2011 by joining other social activists (such as Anna Hazare and Kiran Bedi) in the anti-corruption movement through India Against Corruption (IAC) group. It was IAC who first actively demanded the enactment of Jan Lokpal Bill.
INC	Romesh Sabharwal	– A first-time contestant in electoral politics.  – He was a former student and youth leader. He has been associated with Congress’ student wing (National Students Union of India or NSUI) and the youth wing (the Youth Congress) for the last 40 years. Sabharwal is a former Delhi President of NSUI.
BJP	Sunil Yadav	– Sunil Yadav, also a first-timer in electoral politics, is the Delhi President of Bhartiya Janata Yuva Morcha’s (youth wing of BJP).  – Most of his political career is based in Delhi itself. He started his political career as Bhartiya Janata Yuva Morcha’s (BJYM) Mandal President and rose through the ranks to become District President of Yuva Morcha, Delhi General Secretary of Yuva Morcha and finally Delhi President of Yuva Morcha.  – Yadav is an advocate by profession and BJP pitted this young leader against 2-time chief minister Kejriwal to get a large chunk of the youth votes in the New Delhi assembly constituency.  – He is a local candidate here and wants to bank on the local versus outsider campaign.
BSP	Ramgulam	–

Main Issues in 2020 Delhi Assembly Election’s New Delhi Constituency

New Delhi assembly constituency’s main 2020 election issues are:

• Lack of focus to the constituency by its sitting MLA and incumbent Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

• Lack of poll promise fulfilment since 2015.

• No government school upgrade in New Delhi assembly constituency has taken place. It has created a poor outlook among the Grade IV government employees, who can’t afford to send their children to private schools.

• Lack of Mohalla Clinic in the constituency also seems to have angered the local poor and middle-income families.

• The privatization of electricity by Kejriwal has led to inflated electricity bills in contrast to other parts of Delhi.

• Resentment is high among the Grade IV workers of New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and other government agencies.

• The voting pattern of the workers’ unions, who voted for Kejriwal during the 2015 election, will play an important role in the upcoming 2020 assembly election in New Delhi constituency.

• Some of the perceptions about Arvind Kejriwal and AAP that may play spoilsport in the re-election of Kejriwal include his autocratic style of functioning, his silence on the ongoing anti-CAA protests, and resentment among a section of AAP supporters regarding sidelining of poet-politician Kumar Vishwas, expelling of activist-politician Kapil Mishra, criticism of Kejriwal by the lawyer-activist and once-closest advisor Prashant Bhushan, and many more.

Winners of New Delhi Constituency in Previous Delhi Assembly Elections

• Winners and Losers of New Delhi Constituency in 2015 Delhi Assembly Election

During the 2015 Delhi Legislative Assembly election, AAP’s Arvind Kejriwal won the New Delhi constituency and defeated BJP’s Nupur Sharma by 31,583 votes.

Candidates	Political Party	Votes Received (Vote Percentage)	Turnout
Arvind Kejriwal	AAP	57,213 votes (64.34%)	89,207 votes (65.77%)
Nupur Sharma	BJP	25,630 votes (28.81%)
Kiran Walia	INC	4,781 votes (5.37%)
Swami Om Ji	ABHM	373 votes (0.41%)

• In 2020, it is won by AAP’s Arvind Kejriwal

• In 2013, it was won by AAP’s Arvind Kejriwal

• In 2008, it was won by INC’s (late) Sheila Dikshit