Lost Booths, New Strategy: BJP's Ground Game Reboot Ahead Of Crucial UP Polls

With less than six months to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, the BJP is stepping up its grassroots preparations. . The first phase of its outreach is set to begin on September 17, which marks Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birthday, and is expected to coincide with the start of the election campaign.

The groundwork comes as an RSS-BJP-government coordination meeting was held in Lucknow on Wednesday. BJP national general secretary (organisation) B.L. Santhosh, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Deputy Chief Ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak, state president Pankaj Chaudhary and top RSS functionaries from Uttar Pradesh attended the meeting.

Notably, the focus is on assessing the party’s preparations, building the election narrative and ensuring that its message reaches the grassroots. Leaders will also take stock of government schemes that are yet to be completed and push for their implementation before the election schedule is announced.

BJP Takes Pulse Across Regions

BJP national general secretary and Uttar Pradesh in-charge Vinod Tawde is scheduled to visit Gorakhpur on September 17 and 18. During his two-day visit, he is expected to stay overnight and meet party workers and local leaders to assess the organisation’s preparedness and gather feedback ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. Gorakhpur is the political stronghold of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

The BJP has already begun preparations in the region, with state general secretary Abhijat Mishra overseeing the initial organisational work ahead of Tawde’s visit.

The exercise will continue in Ayodhya, where the BJP will hold an organisational meeting on September 19 and 20. The choice of Ayodhya comes as the party seeks to sharpen its Hindutva narrative ahead of the polls.

Tawde will then travel to Prayagraj on September 21 and 22, where he is expected to meet mandal-level workers and RSS office-bearers.

He will also visit four of the BJP’s six organisational regions — West, Braj, Kashi and Kanpur-Bundelkhand — to gather first-hand feedback before the party launches a wider campaign led by Modi and other central leaders.

BJP Reviews Ground-Level Organisation

BJP national president Nitin Nabin is also expected to visit Meerut around September 21-22 and meet party workers as part of the exercise to assess the organisation’s preparedness and take the pulse of the state.

The BJP has been conducting a series of organisational reviews in recent weeks, focusing on booth-level preparedness, cadre mobilisation, coordination between the government and the organisation, and the challenges posed by the Opposition.

The reviews have also examined seats the BJP lost in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, areas where its cadre network needs strengthening, and coordination between elected representatives and grassroots workers. The BJP had lost 29 Lok Sabha seats in the 2024 General Elections, which translates to roughly more than 140 Assembly seats. The party has begun identifying booths and the reasons why votes shifted, and it is attempting to rebuild trust to bring the booth back.

The central leadership has stepped up its engagement with the Uttar Pradesh unit. Last week, Santhosh held a closed-door meeting with senior state leaders to assess the political situation. The party’s core committee has also reviewed coordination between the government and the organisation.

Tawde’s regional visits are intended to provide a further assessment from the ground. The central leadership hopes to gain a direct sense of the party’s organisational strengths and gaps across different parts of the state, beyond reports from the state leadership.

A senior UP BJP leader said the visits will also examine the functioning of booth committees, Shakti Kendras and other organisational units, as well as the party’s ability to mobilise workers and beneficiaries around its political messaging.

Meanwhile, the 2027 UP polls are still some months away, but the BJP isn't waiting to act. Its ground reviews across Gorakhpur, Ayodhya, Prayagraj and Meerut point to a clear shift toward booth-level course correction. With RSS support factored in, the party is working to rebuild the trust it lost in 2024, well before the campaign formally kicks off.