The exit poll projections for the Odisha Assembly elections suggest a tight contest between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), giving them a equal of 62-80 seats.
Axis My India on Sunday projected vote share also stood at 42 per cent for both the parties. The question remains whether long-time Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik be able to make a comeback in the state.
If the poll projections turn real on June 4, then this would be the first time since 2004 that Patnaik's BJD might not get the sole majority in the state assembly.
The Legislative Assembly elections in Odisha were conducted in four phases alongside the Lok Sabha elections, from May 13 to June 1.
As many as 28 seats went to polls in the first phase on May 13, while 35 seats voted in the second phase on May 20. In the third and fourth phase -- May 25 and June 1 -- 42 seats each went to polls.
The state Assembly polls saw an overall voter turnout of 75.68 per cent in phase 1, 73.51 per cent in phase 2, 74.44 in phase 3 and 71.92 per cent in phase 4.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJD emerged victorious as the single-largest party with a staggering 112 seats. The BJP came second with 23 seats while Congress bagged nine seats.
ODISHA LOK SABHA EXIT POLLS
In the Lok Sabha elections, which was held simultaneously with the state polls, Axis My India projected BJP to win 18-20 seats, giving only 0-2 seats to the BJD.
Jan Ki Baat exit poll projected the saffron camp to win 15-18 seats, while BJD was given 3-7 seats. The India News-D-Dynamics projected 13 seats for BJP, 8 for BJD and none for the INDIA bloc.
Today's Chanakya also predicted 16 seats for the BJP, 4 for the BJD and one for the INDIA bloc.
The counting of votes for the Odisha Assembly elections as well as the 2024 Lok Sabha elections will take place on June 4.
