In Droupadi Murmu’s Victory, Cross-Voting Bares Cracks In Opposition
The BJP’s presidential nominee Droupadi Murmu, who is expected to become India’s first tribal President, received a sizable number of cross votes from opposition MLAs. Sources claim that 17 opposition MPs and about 125 MLAs cast cross votes in favour of Droupadi Murmu.
Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Himanta Biswa Sarma, the chief ministers of the BJP, sent out statements shortly after Droupadi Murmu defeated Yashwant Sinha to win the election, “thanking” the opposition MLAs who had cast their ballots independently.
Even more surprisingly, Droupadi Murmu received a vote from Kerala, a state with 140 legislators but no members of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Both the opposition Congress-led UDF and the ruling Left-led alliance had declared their support for Yashwant Sinha.
Both the opposition UDF and the LDF, which is run by the Congress, had declared their support for Sinha.
The leader of the BJP in Kerala rejoiced over the one vote, claiming that it was more significant than the other 139 votes cast in the state. “The one vote from Kerala that Droupadi Murmu received is more significant than the other 139 votes cast. In contrast to the state’s opposing Left and Right fronts, this vote is in favour “K Surendran remarked.
Yashwant Sinha received about 36% of the vote, leaving Droupadi Murmu with 64% of the vote. 25 opposition MLAs in Assam supported Droupadi Murmu. Similar cross-voting had occurred during the state’s most recent Rajya Sabha elections, which the ruling BJP won both of the seats.
“In the 126-member Assam Assembly, Droupadi Murmu received 104 votes compared to the NDA’s initial strength of 79. a 2 absence. My sincere gratitude to the Assamese people for placing their trust in the NDA’s presidential candidate and enthusiastically participating in this momentous occasion, “Himanta Sarma, the chief minister of Assam, tweeted.
The winner was announced as Droupadi Murmu after more than ten hours of counting. Yashwant Sinha received 1,877 first preference votes to Droupadi Murmu’s 2,824, a narrow victory. She received 6,76,803 votes, compared to Yashwant Sinha’s 3,80,177.
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