Analysis of India 2014 General Election Results
The 2014 general elections in India were instrumental in handing the BJP its biggest-ever electoral victory in the country. Of the 543 Lok Sabha seats for which the elections were held, BJP managed to secure 282 seats of its own. This hadn't happened in the last 30 years, which was a clear sign of how decisive the mandate in 2014 was. The BJP's jubilation was only equalled by the Congress's disappointment, as it failed to reach even 50 seats on its own. The UPA was reduced to 60+ seats in total, with almost all its allies routed in their respective states.
A close analysis of the results presented some interesting patterns:
Uttar Pradesh conquered: Narendra Modi's right-hand man Amit Shah delivered the desired result in UP, and exceeded the party's expectations. Shah's industrious campaigning and shrewd caste calculations swung the entire state in BJP's favour, as the party managed to win 73 of the 80 seats. Amit Shah was also instrumental in discovering and aligning with strategic allies; one good example was Apna Dal, which nobody had heard of, but which managed to grab two seats in its first-ever election. Also, strong regional parties such as BSP and SP were decimated in the state.
You can check Uttar Pradesh Lok Sabha Elections Result Party Wise.
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BJP juggernaut in Northeast: When Modi was busy outlining the campaigning strategy in the early days, he told the party workers that every state matters. Particular focus was on the Northeast, where Modi conducted quite a few rallies. As a result, BJP was able to win nine seats from this rather isolated region. Given that the party had no foothold in the Northeast, this was nothing short of a miracle.
Here is the Election results state wise in NorthEast India: Sikkim, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland
Development plank, not Hindutva: For a party that built its foundation on Hindu pride, BJP deviated from the beaten track in 2014 and instead focused solely on development, job creation, and security. It was able to leverage this in the form of Narendra Modi, who enjoyed an exceptional track record as the Chief Minister of Gujarat. In hindsight, the people of India made it amply clear that they had had enough of religion, family and caste-based politics, and wanted to focus on prosperity.
Here is the Lok Sabha Election Results of Gujarat
Anti-incumbency against Congress: But all the credit may not go to Modi. The Congress also did its best in removing itself from the mind of the voters. Thanks to inept governance, fragmented foreign policy, and spiralling corruption, the party faced overall rejection, and got completely wiped off in Rajasthan, Delhi (0/7), Gujarat (0/26), and Himachal Pradesh (0/4), Its performance was also abysmal in big states like Madhya Pradesh (2/29) and Uttar Pradesh (2/80). In the southern state of Karnataka, despite being a Congress stronghold, Karnataka gave 17 seats to the BJP and only 9 to the Congress.
Check Overall Lok Sabha Election Results State Wise
Highest-ever turnout: The 16th Lok Sabha election witnessed a record turnount in parliamentary elections, that of 66.38%. In itself, the turnout was a clear sign that the people of India were voting for change.
Leadership styles: In 2014, while Modi was seen as a strong leader by the public with administrative experience, Rahul Gandhi came across as a reluctant and ineffective leader with no strong base even within the party. This was evident by the vocal demands of the Congress workers to bring Priyanka Gandhi to the fore. It wouldn't be unfair to say that the Congress sacrificed the 2014 election in trying to project Rahul Gandhi as a larger-than-life leader.
BJP made inroads in J&K: Even the state of Jammu & Kashmir, where the National Conference and Congress maintained an iron grip, was swept clean by the BJP (3) and the PDP (3). The likes of Farooq Abdullah and Ghulam Nabi Azad lost the contest, a clear sign that the public was tired of old leadership, and identity and caste politics.
Get the Information about Jammu & Kashmir Lok Sabha Election Results
New bastions: More importantly, BJP made new inroads into important states that were traditionally thought unassailable. One example is West Bengal, where although the TMC dominated (34/42) as expected, BJP also bagged 2 seats. This was a departure from the past.
Left wiped out: The CPI-M managed only two seats in West Bengal. In Kerala, the party got only 5 of the 20 seats. All in all, this signalled the diminishing of the Left ideology in India, which meant more progressive parties would command popularity in the future.
Many rules of general election in India were rewritten in 2014. With a total of 330+ seats, the NDA looked forward to a comfortable tenure of five years. During this period, many path-breaking changes have happened, foremost being the demonetisation in 2016, mass opening of bank accounts under Jan Dhan yojana, and GST introduction. However, it is yet to be seen if the public mood remains in their favour, or swings against them!
