With wins in 48 seats and leads in another 89 at 3.00 p.m., Congress is moving close to attaining a majority in the 2023 Karnataka State Assembly elections. The incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has won 20 seats and is leading in 42 seats.
Also read | Karnataka election results live
Here’s how prominent leaders in the State are faring in the election.
Basavaraj Bommai
Current Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai won against Congress Party’s Yasir Ahmed Khan Pathan in Shiggaon constituency of Karnataka.
As the results started pouring in on Saturday, Mr. Bommai conceded defeat in the election. “We could not make the mark despite a lot of efforts put in by everybody, right from our Prime Minister. Congress has been able to make the mark. Once the results come, we will do the detailed analysis. As a national political party, we will see what the gaps and deficiencies at different levels are. We will look into that,” Mr. Bommai told the media.
D.K. Shivakumar
Seven-time MLA and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president D.K. Shivakumar retained his Kanakapura seat with an impressive majority of around 75% votes. His closest competitors were JD(S)’s B. Nagaraju with around 11% of the votes and BJP’s R. Ashoka with almost 10% of the votes.
Speaking to the press, Mr. Shivakumar thanked party leader Sonia Gandhi and the Gandhi family for their faith and trust as he broke down on camera.
H.D. Kumaraswamy
Former Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy won in the Channapatna constituency with almost 49% votes. BJP candidate C.P. Yogeshwara was not far behind and scored bagged almost 41% votes in the constituency.
Meanwhile, his son and actor-turned-politician Nikhil Kumaraswamy lost to Congress party’s H.A. Iqbal Hussain in Ramanagaram constituency.
“This loss is not final. I will continue with fight. I thank the voters for having voted for JD(S). Neither for me nor my family electoral losses are not new. My father H.D. Deve Gowda, brother H.D. Revanna and I have all lost elections before. I will strive to build the party’s organisation. Party cadre need not worry or become anxious,” Mr. Kumaraswamy said after the results started pouring in.
Vijayendra Yeddyurappa
Vijayendra Yeddyurappa, son of BJP leader and former Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa won in Shikaripura constituency of Karnataka, and his closest competitor was not another Congress or JD(S) leader but independent candidate S.P. Nagaraj Gowda, who was trailing close behind during most of the counting of votes.
Siddaramaiah
Congress leader and another former Karnataka Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah emerged victorious in his constituency Varuna with around 60% votes. In a tweet, he credited Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra for improving the Congress party’s performance in the State election.
H.P. Swaroop
JD(S) candidate H.P. Swaroop, son of four-time MLA H.S. Prakash, won against BJP leader Preetham J. Gowda in Hassan constituency. Mr. Prakash, the JD(S) leader who represented Hassan four times, died in 2018 following multiple-organ failure.
Jagadish Shettar
Congress candidate and former Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar lost to BJP candidate Mahesh Tenginakai in the Hubballi-Dharwad-Central constituency. Mr. Shettar was denied a ticket by the BJP, after which he quit the party and joined Congress in April 2023.
Priyank Kharge
Congress leader Priyank Kharge won in the Chittapur constituency of Karnataka against BJP leader Manikanta Rathod. In the run-up to the State Assembly election, an alleged audio of Mr. Rathod had gone viral in which he was heard purportedly saying that he will wipe out “Kharge, his wife and children”.
