The people’s perception of the performance of their government could well sway the way they decide their vote. The Lokniti-CSDS survey tapped both the level of satisfaction with the Modi-led Central government and the Baghel-led State government.
Over seven of every 10 respondents were satisfied with the performance of the State government. One-fourth were fully satisfied and a little less than half were somewhat satisfied. Three-fourths of those who were fully satisfied with the government voted for the Congress while the rest voted for the BJP. On the other hand, a higher percentage of those who were somewhat satisfied with the Baghel government voted for the BJP. There was much higher reporting of voting for the BJP among those who were dissatisfied with the Congress government in the State. Thus, only those who were fully satisfied with the State government voted in large numbers for the ruling party (Table 1). This in important ways paved the way for the defeat of the party in power.
More importantly, the BJP enjoyed overwhelming support from those who were appreciative of the Modi-led Central government. Eight of every 10 respondents were satisfied with the Central government’s performance. Close to two-thirds of those who were fully satisfied with the Central government voted for the BJP (64%). Less than one of every 10 respondents (6%) were fully dissatisfied with the Central government and close to two-thirds of them favoured the Congress.
While the Congress government found some appreciation among the voters for its efforts to deal with the farmers’ distress (Table 2), it faired quite poorly on three fronts – tackling unemployment, corruption, and price rise (Table 3). More than one-fourth of those with access to higher education (27%) and 26% of those below 25 years of age were unhappy with the efforts of the government to generate employment. Two of every 10 of the urban voters and the poor were also disappointed with the government regarding its inability to deal with unemployment (Table 4). This factor may well have been responsible for the Congress being voted out of power.
The methodology used for the Lokniti-CSDS survey
Lokniti-CSDS survey | Note on weight application on data
