2004 Indian general election (original) (raw)

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2004 Indian general election

1999 20 April, 26 April, 5 and 10 May 2004 2009
outgoing memberselected members
543 of the 545 seats in the Lok Sabha[a]272 seats needed for a majority
Registered 671,487,930
Turnout 58.07% (Decrease 1.92pp)
First party Second party Third party Sonia Gandhi (cropped).jpg Atal Bihari Vajpayee.jpg Surjith-6.JPG Leader Sonia Gandhi Atal Bihari Vajpayee Harkishan Singh Surjeet Party INC BJP CPI(M) Alliance INC+ NDA LF Last election 28.30%, 114 seats 23.75%, 182 seats 5.40%, 33 seats Seats won 145 138 43 Seat change Increase 31 Decrease 44 Increase 10 Popular vote 103,408,949 86,371,561 22,070,614 Percentage 26.53% 22.16% 5.66% Swing Decrease 1.77pp Decrease 1.59pp Increase 0.26pp Alliance seats 218 181 60
Results by constituency
Prime Minister before election Atal Bihari Vajpayee BJP Prime Minister after election Manmohan Singh INC

General elections were held in India in four phases between 20 April and 10 May 2004. Over 670 million people were eligible to vote, electing 543 members of the 14th Lok Sabha.[1] Seven states also held assembly elections to elect state governments. They were the first elections fully carried out with electronic voting machines.

On 13 May the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the lead party of the National Democratic Alliance conceded defeat.[2] The Indian National Congress, which had governed India for all but five years from independence until 1996, returned to power after a record eight years out of office. It was able to put together a comfortable majority of more than 335 members out of 543 with the help of its allies. The 335 members included both the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance, the governing coalition formed after the election, external support from the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Samajwadi Party (SP), Kerala Congress (KC) and the Left Front.

After facing criticism from her own party and from the country, Congress President Sonia Gandhi asked the 22nd Finance Minister Manmohan Singh, an economist, to head the new government. Singh had previously served in the Congress government of Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao in the early 1990s, when he was seen as one of the architects of India's first economic liberalisation plan, which staved off an impending monetary crisis. Despite the fact that Singh had never won a Lok Sabha seat, his considerable goodwill and Sonia Gandhi's nomination won him the support of the UPA allies and the Left Front. Manmohan Singh became the first Sikh and non-Hindu prime minister of India.

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had recommended premature dissolution of the 13th Lok Sabha (in accordance with a provision of the Constitution) to pave the way for early elections apparently in view of the recent good showing of the BJP in the Assembly elections in four states.[3][4]

Polling dates

The election dates for the parliamentary elections were:[5] [6]

Counting began simultaneously on 13 May. Over 370 million of the 675 million eligible citizens voted, with election violence claiming 48 lives, less than half the number killed during the 1999 election. The Indian elections were held in phases in order to maintain law and order. A few states considered sensitive areas required deployment of the armed forces. The average enrolment of voters in each constituency was 1.2 million, although the largest constituency had 3.1 million.

The Election Commission of India is responsible for deciding the dates and conducting elections according to constitutional provisions. The Election Commission employed more than a million electronic voting machines for these elections.

According to India Today, 115.62 billion rupees were expected to have been spent in campaigning for the elections by all political parties combined. Most of the money was spent on the people involved in the election. The Election Commission limited poll expenses to Rs. 2.5 million per constituency. Thus, the actual spending is expected to have been approximately ten times the limit. About 6.5 billion rupees are estimated to have been spent on mobilising 150,000 vehicles. About a billion rupees are estimated to have been spent on helicopters and aircraft.

Phase-wise polling constituencies in each state

State/Union territory Totalconstituencies Election dates and number of constituencies
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4
20 April 26 April 5 May 10 May
Andhra Pradesh 42 21 21
Arunachal Pradesh 2 2
Assam 14 6 8
Bihar 40 11 17 12
Chhattisgarh 11 11
Goa 2 2
Gujarat 26 26
Haryana 10 10
Himachal Pradesh 4 4
Jammu and Kashmir 6 2 1 1 2
Jharkhand 14 6 8
Karnataka 28 15 13
Kerala 20 20
Madhya Pradesh 29 12 17
Maharashtra 48 24 24
Manipur 2 1 1
Meghalaya 2 2
Mizoram 1 1
Nagaland 1 1
Odisha 21 11 10
Punjab 13 13
Rajasthan 25 25
Sikkim 1 1
Tamil Nadu 39 39
Tripura 2 2
Uttar Pradesh 80 32 30 18
Uttarakhand 5 5
West Bengal 42 42
Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1 1
Chandigarh 1 1
Dadra and Nagar Haveli 1 1
Daman and Diu 1 1
Delhi 7 7
Lakshadweep 1 1
Puducherry 1 1
Constituencies 543 141 137 83 182
Total states/UTs polling on this day 16 11 7 16
Total constituencies by end of phase 141 278 361 543
% complete by end of phase 26% 51% 66% 100%
States/UTs Constituencies
Number of states and UTs polling in single phase 24 219
Number of states and UTs polling in two phases 8 198
Number of states and UTs polling in three phases 2 120
Number of states and UTs polling in four phases 1 6
Total 35 543
Result 13 May 2004

In these elections, compared to all the Lok Sabha elections of the 1990s, the battle was more of a head-to-head contest in the sense that there was no viable third front alternative. Largely the contest was between BJP and its allies on one hand and Congress and its allies on the other. The situation did, however, show large regional differences.

The BJP fought the elections as part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), although some of its seat-sharing agreements were made with strong regional parties outside of the NDA such as Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in Andhra Pradesh and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) in Tamil Nadu.

Ahead of the elections there were attempts to form a Congress-led national level joint opposition front. In the end, an agreement could not be reached, but on regional level alliances between Congress and regional parties were made in several states. This was the first time that Congress contested with that type of alliances in a parliamentary election.

The left parties, most notably the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Communist Party of India, contested on their own in their strongholds West Bengal, Tripura and Kerala, confronting both Congress and NDA forces. In several other states, such as Punjab and Andhra Pradesh, they took part in seat sharings with Congress. In Tamil Nadu they were part of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-led Democratic Progressive Alliance.

Two parties refused to go along with either Congress or BJP, Bahujan Samaj Party and Samajwadi Party. Both are based in Uttar Pradesh, the largest state of India (in terms of population). Congress made several attempts to form alliances with them, but in vain. Many believed that they would become the 'spoilers' that would rob Congress of an electoral victory. The result was a four-cornered contest in UP, which didn't really hurt or benefit Congress or BJP significantly.

Forecast and campaigns

[edit]

Most analysts believed the NDA would win the elections. This assessment was also supported by opinion polls. The economy had shown steady growth in the last few months and the disinvestment of government owned production units (a continuation of India's liberalisation policies initiated in the early 1990s) had been on track. The Foreign Exchange Reserves of India stood at more than US$100 billion (7th largest in the world and a record for India). The service sector had also generated a lot of jobs. The party was supposed to have been riding on a wave of the so-called "feel good factor", typified by its promotional campaign "India Shining".[7]

In the past, BJP has largely been seen as a hardline Hindu right wing party with close ties with the hardline organisations the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh & Vishwa Hindu Parishad. Over the years, the party under Vajpayee has slightly distanced itself from hardline policies in order to accommodate a variety of parties within the NDA, like Trinamool Congress (a Congress-breakaway party), breakaway factions of the Janata Dal like JD(U) & BJD, Dravidianist parties like AIADMK and parties largely representing non-Hindus like SAD, a change that was being questioned after the party's poor showing in the assembly elections. These elections were marked by the campaign's emphasis on economic gains. From the last few elections, BJP had realised that its voter base had reached a ceiling and had concentrated on pre-poll rather than post-poll alliances. The foreign origin of Sonia Gandhi also constituted part of the NDA's campaign.

Conducted in month(s)
NDA UPA Other
August 2002 250 195 100
February 2003 315 115 115
August 2003 247 180 115
January 2004 335 110 100
Polling organisation
NDA UPA Other
NDTV-AC Nielsen 230-250 190-205 100-120
Star News-C voter 263-275 174-184 86-98
Aaj Tak-MARG 248 190 105
Sahara DRS 278 181 102
Zee News-Taleem 249 176 117
Actual result 181 218 143
Sources:-[8][9][10]

State/UT-wise voter turnout details

[edit]

State/UT Seats Electors Voters Turnout
Men Women Total Men Women Total Men Women Total
Andhra Pradesh 42 2,53,55,118 2,57,91,224 5,11,46,342 1,83,20,019 1,73,84,444 3,57,76,275 72.25 67.4 69.95%
Arunachal Pradesh 2 3,51,564 3,32,470 6,84,034 1,99,413 1,83,909 3,85,446 56.72 55.31 56.35%
Assam 14 78,21,591 71,93,283 1,50,14,874 56,71,454 47,01,710 1,03,77,354 72.51 65.36 69.11%
Bihar 40 2,70,53,408 2,35,06,264 5,05,59,672 1,71,95,139 1,21,34,913 2,93,32,306 63.56 51.62 58.02%
Chhattisgarh 11 69,04,742 68,14,700 1,37,19,442 40,39,747 31,00,827 71,46,189 58.51 45.50 52.09%
Goa 2 4,75,847 4,65,320 9,41,167 2,86,156 2,64,934 5,53,105 60.14 56.94 58.77%
Gujarat 26 1,73,41,760 1,63,33,302 3,36,75,062 86,64,929 65,43,424 1,52,13,501 49.97 40.06 45.18%
Haryana 10 66,60,631 56,59,926 1,23,20,557 45,36,234 35,54,361 80,97,064 68.11 62.80 65.72%
Himachal Pradesh 4 21,28,828 20,53,167 41,81,995 12,69,539 12,11,994 24,97,149 59.84 59.03 59.71%
Jammu & Kashmir 6 34,68,235 28,99,880 63,68,115 13,91,263 8,41,489 22,41,729 40.11 29.02 35.20%
Jharkhand 14 89,14,164 78,98,175 1,68,12,339 55,61,056 38,01,786 93,63,363 62.38 48.13 55.69%
Karnataka 28 1,96,05,257 1,89,86,838 3,85,92,095 1,31,19,442 1,19,62,519 2,51,39,122 66.92 63.00 65.14%
Kerala 20 1,01,68,428 1,09,57,045 2,11,25,473 74,80,351 75,67,329 1,50,93,960 73.56 69.06 71.45%
Madhya Pradesh 29 2,00,28,161 1,83,61,940 3,83,90,101 1,13,22,391 71,24,280 1,84,63,451 56.53 38.80 48.09%
Maharashtra 48 3,27,88,476 3,02,23,732 6,30,12,208 1,89,57,642 1,52,63,748 3,42,63,317 57.82 50.50 54.38%
Manipur 2 7,46,054 7,90,456 15,36,510 5,22,526 5,12,834 10,35,696 70.03 64.88 67.41%
Meghalaya 2 6,48,654 6,40,720 12,89,374 3,02,113 3,77,125 6,79,321 46.58 58.86 52.69%
Mizoram 1 2,73,454 2,76,505 5,49,959 1,75,372 1,70,000 3,49,799 64.13 61.48 63.60%
Nagaland 1 5,47,114 4,94,319 10,41,433 5,05,682 4,46,002 9,55,690 92.43 90.23 91.77%
Orissa 21 1,31,91,691 1,24,60,298 2,56,51,989 90,10,592 79,29,405 1,69,45,092 68.30 63.64 66.06%
Punjab 13 86,52,294 79,63,105 1,66,15,399 54,37,861 47,94,658 1,02,33,165 62.85 60.21 61.59%
Rajasthan 25 1,81,49,028 1,65,63,357 3,47,12,385 1,00,09,085 72,90,569 1,73,46,549 55.15 44.02 49.97%
Sikkim 1 1,45,738 1,36,199 2,81,937 1,12,404 1,02,890 2,19,769 77.13 75.54 77.95%
Tamil Nadu 39 2,32,69,301 2,39,82,970 4,72,52,271 1,50,06,523 1,36,42,797 2,87,32,954 64.49 56.89 60.81%
Tripura 2 10,23,368 9,54,854 19,78,222 7,14,491 6,04,452 13,27,000 69.82 63.30 67.08%
Uttar Pradesh 80 6,03,28,608 5,02,95,882 11,06,34,490 3,25,52,479 2,07,20,447 5,32,78,071 53.96 41.20 48.16%
Uttarakhand 5 28,38,204 27,24,433 55,62,637 14,70,496 11,97,917 26,73,832 51.81 43.97 48.16%
West Bengal 42 2,47,98,089 2,26,39,342 4,74,37,431 1,98,04,552 1,70,66,370 3,70,21,478 79.86 75.38 78.04%
Andaman & Nicobar Islands (UT) 1 1,31,502 1,10,143 2,41,645 83,520 70,284 1,53,841 63.51 63.81 63.66%
Chandigarh (UT) 1 2,92,438 2,53,246 5,27,684 1,51,932 1,17,886 2,69,849 51.95 50.11 51.14%
Dadra & Nagar Haveli (UT) 1 65,059 57,622 1,22,681 43,795 40,904 84,703 67.32 70.99 69.04%
Daman & Diu (UT) 1 39,595 39,637 79,232 29,751 55,591 25,839 65.26 75.06 70.16%
Lakshadweep (UT) 1 19,880 19,153 39,033 15,698 16,122 31,820 78.96 84.17 81.52%
NCT OF Delhi 7 49,53,925 38,09,550 87,63,475 24,28,289 16,97,944 41,26,443 49.02 44.57 47.09%
Puducherry (UT) 1 3,10,658 3,26,009 6,36,667 2,40,114 2,44,202 4,84,336 77.29 74.91 76.07%
India 543 34,94,90,864 32,19,97,066 67,14,87,930 21,72,34,104 17,27,14,226 38,99,48,330 62.16 53.64 58.07%
Source-ECI [1]

Seat share of parties in the election

SP (6.60%)

Other (20.59%)

Vote share of parties in the election

SP (4.32%)

Other (28.2%)

Party Votes % Seats
Indian National Congress 103,408,949 26.53 145
Bharatiya Janata Party 86,371,561 22.16 138
Communist Party of India (Marxist) 22,070,614 5.66 43
Bahujan Samaj Party 20,765,229 5.33 19
Samajwadi Party 16,824,072 4.32 36
Telugu Desam Party 11,844,811 3.04 5
Rashtriya Janata Dal 9,384,147 2.41 24
Janata Dal (United) 9,144,963 2.35 8
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 8,547,014 2.19 0
All India Trinamool Congress 8,071,867 2.07 2
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 7,064,393 1.81 16
Shiv Sena 7,056,255 1.81 12
Nationalist Congress Party 7,023,175 1.80 9
Janata Dal (Secular) 5,732,296 1.47 3
Communist Party of India 5,484,111 1.41 10
Biju Janata Dal 5,082,849 1.30 11
Shiromani Akali Dal 3,506,681 0.90 8
Lok Janshakti Party 2,771,427 0.71 4
Rashtriya Lok Dal 2,463,607 0.63 3
Telangana Rashtra Samithi 2,441,405 0.63 5
Pattali Makkal Katchi 2,169,020 0.56 6
Asom Gana Parishad 2,069,600 0.53 2
Indian National Lok Dal 1,936,703 0.50 0
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha 1,846,843 0.47 5
Revolutionary Socialist Party 1,689,794 0.43 3
Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 1,679,870 0.43 4
All India Forward Bloc 1,365,055 0.35 3
Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation 1,281,688 0.33 0
Apna Dal 844,053 0.22 0
Indian Union Muslim League 770,098 0.20 1
Gondwana Ganatantra Party 720,189 0.18 0
Naga People's Front 715,366 0.18 1
Janata Party 517,683 0.13 0
Haryana Vikas Party 506,122 0.13 0
Jammu & Kashmir National Conference 493,067 0.13 2
Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh 428,566 0.11 0
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen 417,248 0.11 1
Shiromani Akali Dal (Simranjit Singh Mann) 387,682 0.10 0
Republican Party of India (Athawale) 367,510 0.09 1
National Loktantrik Party 367,049 0.09 1
Kerala Congress 353,905 0.09 1
Kannada Nadu Party 349,183 0.09 0
Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) 337,386 0.09 1
Peasants and Workers Party of India 319,572 0.08 0
Republican Party of India 295,545 0.08 0
Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party 275,267 0.07 0
Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party 267,457 0.07 1
Peoples Republican Party 261,219 0.07 0
Indian Federal Democratic Party 256,411 0.07 1
Kerala Congress (M) 209,880 0.05 0
Rashtriya Samanta Dal 209,694 0.05 0
Samta Party 201,276 0.05 0
Lok Bhalai Party 187,787 0.05 0
Mizo National Front 182,864 0.05 1
Bharatiya Navshakti Party 171,080 0.04 1
All Jharkhand Students Union 157,930 0.04 0
Sikkim Democratic Front 153,409 0.04 1
Marxist Co-ordination Committee 147,470 0.04 0
Rashtriya Samaj Paksha 146,571 0.04 0
Rashtriya Parivartan Dal 139,145 0.04 0
Jharkhand Disom Party 135,685 0.03 0
Pyramid Party of India 130,362 0.03 0
Ekta Shakti 126,924 0.03 0
Autonomous State Demand Committee 101,808 0.03 0
Akhil Bharatiya Sena 92,210 0.02 0
Hindu Mahasabha 88,214 0.02 0
Federal Party of Manipur 88,179 0.02 0
Bihar People's Party 86,418 0.02 0
Party of Democratic Socialism 81,999 0.02 0
Samata Samaj Party 78,791 0.02 0
Mahabharat People's Party 77,055 0.02 0
Arunachal Congress 76,527 0.02 0
Jharkhand Party 74,364 0.02 0
Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party 70,078 0.02 0
Indian Justice Party 67,914 0.02 0
Jharkhand Party (Naren) 67,782 0.02 0
United Minorities Front, Assam 64,657 0.02 0
Labour Party (Secular) 63,989 0.02 0
Rashtriya Swabhimaan Party 58,296 0.01 0
Pragatisheel Manav Samaj Party 54,746 0.01 0
Lok Rajya Party 54,097 0.01 0
Bahujan Kisan Dal 52,669 0.01 0
Majlis Bachao Tahreek 47,560 0.01 0
Peoples Democratic Party 45,720 0.01 0
Uttarakhand Kranti Dal 43,899 0.01 0
Marxist Communist Party of India (S.S. Srivastava) 38,766 0.01 0
Amra Bangali 38,107 0.01 0
Vidharbha Rajya Party 36,974 0.01 0
Urs Samyuktha Paksha 33,128 0.01 0
Ambedkarist Republican Party 31,467 0.01 0
Prabuddha Republican Party 29,792 0.01 0
Rashtravadi Communist Party 28,757 0.01 0
Rashtriya Samajik Nayak Paksha 27,594 0.01 0
Sampurna Vikas Dal 27,135 0.01 0
Tamil Desiyak Katchi 25,348 0.01 0
Kosi Vikas Party 25,258 0.01 0
Chhattisgarhi Samaj Party 24,696 0.01 0
Bharatiya Manavata Vikas Party 24,176 0.01 0
Loktantrik Samajwadi Party 22,811 0.01 0
Savarn Samaj Party 21,246 0.01 0
Ambedkar Samaj Party 20,767 0.01 0
Indian National League 20,159 0.01 0
Bharatiya Gaon Taj Dal 19,909 0.01 0
Akhil Bharatiya Congress Dal (Ambedkar) 19,548 0.01 0
Socialist Party (Lohia) 18,628 0.00 0
Shivrajya Party 18,374 0.00 0
Samajwadi Jan Parishad 17,717 0.00 0
Hindustan Janata Party 17,410 0.00 0
Revolutionary Communist Party of India (Rasik Bhatt) 16,691 0.00 0
Bharatiya Republican Paksha 16,546 0.00 0
Rashtriya Vikas Party 15,159 0.00 0
Trinamool Gana Parishad 14,933 0.00 0
Manuvadi Party 14,233 0.00 0
Bharat Kranti Rakshak Party 12,547 0.00 0
Rashtriya Hamara Dal 12,346 0.00 0
Parivartan Samaj Party 12,273 0.00 0
Bharatiya Eklavya Party 12,197 0.00 0
Proutist Sarva Samaj Party 11,561 0.00 0
Bharatiya Rashtravadi Paksha 11,459 0.00 0
Pachim Banga Rajya Muslim League 10,446 0.00 0
Rajasthan Vikash Party 10,032 0.00 0
Lokpriya Samaj Party 9,913 0.00 0
Bharatiya Jana Sangh 9,707 0.00 0
Rashtriya Krantikari Samajwadi Party 9,145 0.00 0
Vidarbha Janata Congress 9,097 0.00 0
Shoshit Samaj Dal 8,862 0.00 0
Jai Hind Party 8,645 0.00 0
Bharatiya Minorities Suraksha Mahasangh 8,200 0.00 0
Akhil Bharatiya Desh Bhakt Morcha 7,696 0.00 0
Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party 7,584 0.00 0
Rashtriya Sawarn Dal 7,374 0.00 0
Navbharat Nirman Party 7,169 0.00 0
Krantikari Samyavadi Party 6,948 0.00 0
Democratic Bharatiya Samaj Party 6,717 0.00 0
Youth and Students Party 6,580 0.00 0
Ephraim Union 6,512 0.00 0
Akhil Bharatiya Lok Tantrik Alp-Sankhyak Jan Morcha 6,003 0.00 0
United Goans Democratic Party 5,881 0.00 0
Pichhra Samaj Party 5,672 0.00 0
All India Momin Conference 5,113 0.00 0
Labour Party of India (V.V. Prasad) 4,977 0.00 0
All India Minorities Front 4,874 0.00 0
Republican Party of India (Khobragade) 4,790 0.00 0
Naari Shakti Party 4,649 0.00 0
Bahujan Vikas Party 4,533 0.00 0
Bharatiya Ekta Dal 4,312 0.00 0
Shikshit Berozgar Sena 4,303 0.00 0
Yuva Gantantra Party 4,140 0.00 0
Rashtravadi Janata Party 3,737 0.00 0
Kranti Kari Jai Hind Sena 3,393 0.00 0
Mudiraj Rashtriya Samithi 3,345 0.00 0
Sikkim Sangram Parishad 3,216 0.00 0
Janata Vikas Party 3,173 0.00 0
National Students Party 3,069 0.00 0
Secular Party of India 3,041 0.00 0
Vikas Party 2,998 0.00 0
Social Action Party 2,987 0.00 0
Akhil Bharatiya Rashtriya Azad Hind Party 2,801 0.00 0
Loktantrik Chetna Party 2,776 0.00 0
Sikkim Himali Rajya Parishad 2,765 0.00 0
Janmangal Paksh 2,684 0.00 0
Sanatan Samaj Party 2,679 0.00 0
Lok Sewa Dal 2,646 0.00 0
Jana Unnayan Mancha 2,592 0.00 0
Rashtriya Lok Seva Morcha 2,476 0.00 0
Republican Party of India (Democratic) 2,370 0.00 0
Bhartiya Lok Kalyan Dal 2,242 0.00 0
Panchayat Raj Party 2,165 0.00 0
Bharatiya Backward Party 2,162 0.00 0
All Kerala M.G.R. Dravida Munnetra Party 2,158 0.00 0
Akhil Bhartiya Rajarya Sabha 2,080 0.00 0
Bharat Ki Lok Jimmedar Party 2,055 0.00 0
Rashtriya Garima Party 2,043 0.00 0
Rashtriya Garib Dal 1,977 0.00 0
Ekta Krandi Dal U.P. 1,939 0.00 0
Bharatiya Labour Party 1,758 0.00 0
Phule Bharti Lok Party 1,690 0.00 0
Bharatiya Prajatantrik Shudh Gandhiwadi Krishak Dal 1,689 0.00 0
Mool Bharati (S) Party 1,675 0.00 0
Bharatiya Nagrik Party 1,580 0.00 0
Jammu and Kashmir Awami League 1,519 0.00 0
Hind Morcha 1,459 0.00 0
Jharkhand People's Party 1,449 0.00 0
Maharashtra Rajiv Congress 1,399 0.00 0
Janhit Samaj Party 1,310 0.00 0
Vijeta Party 1,304 0.00 0
Socialistic Democratic Party 1,265 0.00 0
Jansatta Party 1,189 0.00 0
Federal Congress of India 1,037 0.00 0
Nidaya Malik (N) Party 1,030 0.00 0
Indian Bahujan Samajwadi Party 972 0.00 0
Desh Bhakt Party 912 0.00 0
Ambedkar National Congress 825 0.00 0
NTR Telugu Desam Party (Lakshmi Parvathi) 759 0.00 0
Akhil Bhartiya Loktantra Party 754 0.00 0
Jebamani Janata 734 0.00 0
Niswarth Sewa Party 730 0.00 0
Jan Chetna Party 671 0.00 0
Hindu Ekta Andolan Party 620 0.00 0
Krantikari Manuwadi Morcha 597 0.00 0
Bharatiya Prajatantra Party 573 0.00 0
Bharatiya Muhabbat Party (All India) 566 0.00 0
Manav Jagriti Manch 552 0.00 0
Bharatiya Janvadi Party 543 0.00 0
Bharatiya Surajya Manch 515 0.00 0
Rashtriya Janadhikar Party 487 0.00 0
Praja Party 485 0.00 0
Bharti Sarvadarshi Parishad 427 0.00 0
Shoshit Samaj Party 395 0.00 0
Rashtriya Sakar Party 379 0.00 0
Bharatiya Sarvkalyan Krantidal 365 0.00 0
Awami Party 327 0.00 0
Swaraj Dal 298 0.00 0
Akhand Bharti 138 0.00 0
Parmarth Party 126 0.00 0
Independents 16,549,900 4.25 5
Nominated Anglo-Indians 2
Total 389,779,784 100.00 545
Valid votes 389,779,784 99.96
Invalid/blank votes 168,546 0.04
Total votes 389,948,330 100.00
Registered voters/turnout 671,487,930 58.07
Source: ECI

Region-wise results

[edit]

Region Total seats Indian National Congress Bharatiya Janata Party Others
South India 131 48 Increase 14 18 Decrease 1 65 Decrease 13
West India 78 27 Increase 10 28 Decrease 7 23 Decrease 3
Hindi-Heartland 225 46 Increase 12 78 Decrease 34 101 Increase 22
North-East India 25 11 Decrease 3 4 Increase 2 13 Increase 4
East India 63 8 Increase 3 7 Decrease 4 48 Increase 1
Union Territories 22 5 Decrease 5 3 Steady 14 Increase 5
Total 543 145 +31 138 -44 264 +17
Source: Times of India[11]

By state and territory

[edit]

State (# of seats) Alliance/Party Seats Contested Seats won % of votes
Andhra Pradesh (42) UPA Indian National Congress 34 29 41.56
Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) 6 5 6.83
Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) 1 1 1.04
Independent 1 0 0.9
NDA Telugu Desam Party 33 5 33.12
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 9 0 8.4
- - Communist Party Of India (CPI) 1 1 1.34
- - All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen 2 1 1.2
Arunachal Pradesh (2) NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 2 2 53.85
UPA Arunachal Congress 1 0 19.88
Indian National Congress 1 0 9.96
Assam (14) UPA Indian National Congress 14 9 35.07
NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 12 2 22.94
Independent 1 1 6.6
Janata Dal (United) 1 0 1.3
- - Asom Gana Parishad 12 2 19.95
Bihar (40) UPA Rashtriya Janata Dal 26 22 30.67
Lok Janshakti Party 8 4 8.19
Indian National Congress 4 3 4.49
Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) 1 0 0.8
Nationalist Congress Party 1 0 1
NDA Janata Dal (United) 24 6 22.36
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 16 5 14.57
Chhattisgarh (11) NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 11 10 47.78
UPA Indian National Congress 11 1 40.16
- - Bahujan Samaj Party 11 0 4.54
Goa (2) NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 2 1 46.83
UPA Indian National Congress 1 1 29.76
Nationalist Congress Party 1 0 16.04
Gujarat (26) NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 26 14 47.37
UPA Indian National Congress 26 12 43.86
Haryana (10) UPA Indian National Congress 10 9 42.13
NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 10 1 17.21
- - Indian National Lok Dal 10 0 22.43
- - Haryana Vikas Party 9 0 6.25
Himachal Pradesh (4) UPA Indian National Congress 4 3 51.81
NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 4 1 44.25
Jammu & Kashmir (6) UPA Indian National Congress 3 2 27.83
Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party 2 1 11.94
NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 6 0 23.04
- - Jammu & Kashmir National Conference 6 2 22.02
- - Independent 37 1 15.17
Jharkhand (14) UPA Indian National Congress 6 6 21.44
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha 5 4 16.28
Rashtriya Janata Dal 2 2 3.51
Lok Janshakti Party 1 0 0.4
NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 14 1 33.01
- - Communist Party of India (CPI) 1 1 3.8
Karnataka (28) NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 24 18 34.77
Janata Dal (United) 4 0 1.9
UPA Indian National Congress 28 8 36.82
- - Janata Dal (Secular) 28 2 20.45
Kerala (20) Third Front Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) 13 11 31.52
Communist Party Of India (CPI) 4 3 7.89
Janata Dal (Secular) 1 1 2.3
Kerala Congress 1 1 2.3
Independent 1 1 2.1
UPA Muslim League Kerala State Committee 2 1 4.86
Indian National Congress 17 1 32.13
Kerala Congress(M) 1 0 1.4
NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 19 0 10.4
Indian Federal Democratic Party 1 1 1.7
Madhya Pradesh (29) NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 29 25 48.13
UPA Indian National Congress 29 4 34.07
- - Bahujan Samaj Party 28 0 4.75
Maharashtra (48) NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 26 13 22.61
Shiv Sena 22 12 20.11
UPA Indian National Congress 26 13 23.77
Nationalist Congress Party 18 9 18.31
Republican Party of India (A) 1 1 1
Republican Party of India 1 0 0.4
Peoples Republican Party 1 0 0.7
Janata Dal (Secular) 1 0 0.6
Manipur (2) - - Independent 3 1 22.46
UPA Indian National Congress 1 1 14.88
Nationalist Congress Party 1 0 10.37
NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 2 0 20.65
Meghalaya (2) UPA Indian National Congress 2 1 45.55
NDA All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) 1 1 28.27
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 1 0 8.63
Mizoram (1) NDA Mizo National Front 1 1 52.46
- - Independent 1 0 45.67
Nagaland (1) NDA Naga People's Front 1 1 73.12
UPA Indian National Congress 1 0 25.78
Orissa (21) NDA Biju Janata Dal 12 11 30.02
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 9 7 19.30
UPA Indian National Congress 21 2 40.43
- - Jharkhand Mukti Morcha 1 1 1.6
Punjab (13) NDA Shiromani Akali Dal 10 8 34.28
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 3 3 10.48
UPA Indian National Congress 11 2 34.17
Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) 1 0 1.8
Communist Party Of India (CPI) 1 0 2.5
- - Bahujan Samaj Party 13 0 7.67
Rajasthan (25) NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 25 21 49.01
UPA Indian National Congress 25 4 41.42
Sikkim (1) NDA Sikkim Democratic Front 1 1 69.84
UPA Indian National Congress 1 0 27.43
Tamil Nadu (39) UPA Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 16 16 24.60
Indian National Congress 10 10 14.40
Pattali Makkal Katchi 5 5 6.71
Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 4 4 5.85
Communist Party Of India (CPI) 2 2 2.97
Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) 2 2 2.87
NDA All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 33 0 29.77
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 6 0 12.83
Tripura (2) Third Front Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) 2 2 68.80
UPA Indian National Congress 2 0 14.28
NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 1 0 7.82
All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) 1 0 5.09
Uttar Pradesh (80) - - Samajwadi Party 68 35 26.74
- - Bahujan Samaj Party 80 19 24.67
NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 77 10 22.17
Janata Dal (United) 3 1 0.8
UPA Indian National Congress 73 9 12.04
Lok Jan Shakti Party 3 0 0.3
- - Rashtriya Lok Dal 10 3 4.5
- - National Loktantrik Party 7 1 0.6
- - Independent 481 1 3.8
- - Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) 2 1 0.5
Uttarakhand (5) NDA Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 5 3 40.98
UPA Indian National Congress 5 1 38.31
- - Samajwadi Party 5 1 7.93
- - Bahujan Samaj Party 3 0 6.77
West Bengal (42) Third Front Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) 32 26 38.57
Communist Party Of India (CPI) 3 3 4.01
All India Forward Bloc (AIFB) 3 3 3.66
Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) 4 3 4.48
UPA Indian National Congress 37 6 14.56
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha 1 0 0.1
Independent 1 0 0.2
Party of Democratic Socialism 2 0 0.2
NDA All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) 29 1 21.04
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 13 0 8.06
Territories Party Seats won % of Votes Alliance
Andaman & Nicobar Islands Indian National Congress 1 55.77 United Progressive Alliance
Bharatiya Janata Party 0 35.95 National Democratic Alliance
Communist Party of India (Marxist) 0 2.71 Left Front
Independent 0 1.72 None
Others 0 3.85 None
Chandigarh Indian National Congress 1 52.06 United Progressive Alliance
Bharatiya Janata Party 0 35.22 National Democratic Alliance
Indian National Lok Dal 0 6.61 None
Independent 0 3.42 None
Others 0 2.69 None
National Capital Territory of Delhi Indian National Congress 6 54.81 United Progressive Alliance
Bharatiya Janata Party 1 40.67 National Democratic Alliance
Bahujan Samaj Party 0 2.48 None
Independent 0 1.27 None
Lakshadweep Janata Dal (United) 1 49.02 National Democratic Alliance
Indian National Congress 0 48.79 United Progressive Alliance
Janata Party 0 1.47 None
Samajwadi Party 0 0.72 None

Though pre-poll predictions were for an overwhelming majority for the BJP, the exit polls (immediately after the elections and before the counting began) predicted a hung parliament. However, even the exit polls could only indicate the general trend and nowhere close to the final figures. There is also the general perception that as soon as the BJP started realising that events might not proceed entirely in its favour, it changed the focus of its campaign from India Shining to issues of stability. The Congress, who was regarded as "old-fashioned" by the ruling BJP, was largely backed by poor, rural, lower-caste and minority voters that did not participate in the economic boom of previous years that created a wealthy middle class and thus achieved its overwhelming victory on grounds of wealth inequality.

The rout of the ruling parties in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala in the general elections led to calls for the dissolution of the governments of these states.

The stock market (Bombay Stock Exchange) fell in the week prior to the announcement of the results due to fears of an unstable coalition. As soon as counting began, however, it became clear that the Congress coalition was headed for a sizeable lead over the NDA and the market surged, only to crash the following day when the left parties, whose support would be required for government formation, announced that it was their intention to do away with the disinvestment ministry. Following this, Manmohan Singh, the Prime Minister (in office 2004–14) and the prime architect of the economic liberalisation of the early 1990s, hurried to reassure investors that the new government would strive to create a business-friendly climate.

  1. ^ Two seats were reserved for Anglo-Indians and filled by presidential nomination

  2. ^ "General Elections 2004: Facts and figures". India Today. Archived from the original on 23 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.

  3. ^ Waldman, Amy (13 May 2004). "In Huge Upset, Gandhi's Party Wins Election in India (Published 2004)". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 18 August 2018. Retrieved 22 August 2023.

  4. ^ "The dissolution debate". The Hindu. 26 February 2004. Archived from the original on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2023.

  5. ^ "President dissolves Lok Sabha". The Tribune. Archived from the original on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2023.

  6. ^ "General Election, 2004 (Vol I, II, III)". Election Commission of India. Archived from the original on 15 May 2019. Retrieved 8 June 2021.

  7. ^ "General Election Schedule 2004". Election Commission of India.

  8. ^ "BJP spends Rs 150 cr on 'India Shining' campaign". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 17 October 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2023.

  9. ^ "2004 exit polls: when surveys got it horribly wrong". Oneindia. 20 May 2019. Archived from the original on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 20 May 2019.

  10. ^ "Can 2019 exit polls turn out to be wrong like 2004?". Moneycontrol. 20 May 2019. Archived from the original on 21 January 2024. Retrieved 14 December 2022.

  11. ^ "Exit polls: How accurate are they? A look back at 2004, 2009, 2014 predictions". Financial Express. 19 May 2019. Archived from the original on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 14 December 2022.

  12. ^ "Lok Sabha Results Constituency Map: Lok Sabha Election Result with constituencies details along electoral map". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 20 July 2021.