The Congress appears to be headed for yet another electoral disaster in Delhi, with exit polls alluding to a third consecutive wipeout for the party in Delhi. Two of six exit polls predicted zero seats for Congress in the Delhi Assembly elections. If these projections hold true, the party will once again fail to secure a single seat in the national capital, marking a continued decline with no signs of revival.
Congress’s decline in Delhi began in 2015 when it lost all 70 seats, a poll result that was repeated in 2020. Once a dominant force in Delhi under the leadership of Sheila Dikshit, the Congress has struggled to regain relevance in a political landscape now dominated by the AAP and the BJP.
Health Warning: Exit polls are not always accurate.
While three exit polls predicted a big BJP comeback in Delhi after 27 years, two others predicted AAP’s return for a third term. However, all the exit polls have predicted a poll rout for Congress. Here are the exit poll predictions for Congress:
- Matrize – 0-1
- JVC – 0-2
- Pmarq – 0-1
- People’s Pulse – 0
- Mind Brink – 1
- WeePreside – 0
EXIT POLL PROJECTIONS
Three exit polls, People’s Pulse, Pmarq and JVC, suggest that the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, which won back-to-back landslides in 2015 and 2020, is likely to suffer a significant setback. However, two exit polls, Mind Brink and Wee Preside predicted a massive victory for AAP.
PMarq has forecasted 39–49 seats for the BJP and 21-31 for AAP, while Times Now JVC has given the BJP 39–45 seats and AAP 22–31 seats.
People’s Pulse has been the most optimistic for the BJP, projecting between 51 and 60 seats, with AAP trailing at 10-19. Matrize, however, predicted a relatively close contest, estimating 35–40 seats for the BJP and 32-37 for AAP.
However, Mind Brink and Wee Preside have predicted 44-49 and 46–52 seats, respectively, for AAP, with only 21-25 and 18-23 seats for the BJP in Delhi.
Despite these projections, it is important to note that exit polls have been inaccurate in the past. They provide an early indication of voter sentiment but are not always a reliable predictor of final results.
The election results for the 70-member Delhi Assembly will only be known when votes are counted on February 8.