Himachal Assembly Pradesh Election 2018 Opinion Poll - Public Opinion Exit Poll

Virbhadra Singh and Prem Kumar Dhumal have made the position of chief minister for Himachal Pradesh a two horse race for the past 24 years and have exchanged control of the state’s affairs back and forth. The state is known for its rich source of flora and fauna along with its pleasant climate making it one of the go to Tourist Hub for Indians. There are a few more than 20,000 villages and 100 urban bodies with 83 percent literacy rate and the state more of less still depends on tourism and agriculture for its sustenance and functioning. Given the Indian political climate and Narendra Modi helming the center it seems like BJP will oust congress this time around as it will be easier for the center and the state to coordinate when both of them have similar mindsets.  BJP has certainly been more aggressive than congress in the past few years and their agenda is simple – development. Himachal Pradesh packs a lot of potential for the same as it has a lot of river basins to ensure good hydroelectric potential and needs some revamping for government, health and educational institutions. Unhappy is the nation which needs heroes and I think we won’t be unhappy if BJP comes to Power.

Himachal Pradesh assembly consists of 68 seats out of which a part needs to win at least 35 seats to form a government. In 2012, the Congress had won 36 seats and currently holds 35. The BJP had won 26 seats five years ago. Elections in Himachal Pradesh took place on Thursday, 9 November 2017. Votes will be counted on 18 December. The Election Commission announced that the exit polls for Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat will not be made public before the evening of 14 December. However, parties speculate their victory depending on various surveys.
The BJP claimed that they will win the Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections this time and “with a thumping majority” says PK Dhumal, the party’s chief ministerial candidate. The BJP rallied and promoted the propaganda of development in the hills. The party wished to sweep all the votes by raising the matter of development. "Development, development, development", said BJP lawmaker and Mr Dhumal's son Anurag Thakur, emphasizing on good governance as the major issue in the Himachal Pradesh elections this time.

What I believe is that BJP is going to sweep majority this time. They almost made it to the throne in the last elections but seeing the tide in favor of BJP, I believe nobody can stop them from establishing their government at this time. But while the party is claiming to win at least 60 seats, I do not believe it would be such a huge victory as Congress does have political strongholds in some regions in the state. And as per the guidelines of the Election Commision, we will have to wait until the evening of 14 December to see what the Exit Polls say.