Results for: Indian Elections

Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wodeyar, the scion of the 500-year-old Wodeyar royal family, is the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate for the April 26 parliamentary election in Mysuru, Karnataka. The 32-year-old, who studied English and Economics in the US, is seen as a strong contender due to the respect and affection the Wodeyars enjoy among the people of Karnataka. His entry into politics marks a continuation of the family’s legacy of public service, which includes the establishment of educational institutions, infrastructure projects, and social reforms. Despite facing some criticism, Yaduveer remains confident in his ability to serve the people and bring about positive change.

The second round of India’s multi-phase national elections commenced on Friday, with millions of voters casting their ballots. This phase of voting holds great significance for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), as it includes several of its strongholds, such as Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra. The outcome of these elections will play a crucial role in shaping the political landscape of India for the next five years.

In India’s sprawling national election, spanning from the Himalayan peaks to the Andaman’s tropical shores, officials are employing a remarkable array of transportation methods to distribute electronic voting machines. Helicopters, buses, trucks, boats, donkeys, and mules are traversing jungles, mountain tracks, and rivers, transforming remote tents, shipping containers, and school buildings into polling stations. The massive seven-phase election, involving over 1.4 billion people, commenced last week and concludes on June 1, with nearly 970 million voters casting their ballots for 543 Parliament members. The votes will be tallied on June 4.

India’s parliamentary elections, the largest democratic exercise in the world, continue with the second phase on April 26. The polls will be held across 88 constituencies in 13 states and union territories, including the southern states of Kerala and Karnataka. Key candidates include a former opposition leader, a former United Nations official, and a Bollywood star seeking her third term. The results of the election, which began on April 19, will be announced on June 4.

Major political parties in India, including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress, have been found to have violated the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) during the 48-hour silence period preceding the first phase of the country’s general elections. Despite clear rules prohibiting political campaigning during this time, the parties spent substantial money on advertising campaigns on social media platforms like Google and Meta. The BJP was particularly active, posting over 60,000 ads on Google and 6,808 on Meta during the period from April 17 to 19, 2024. The Congress, in contrast, posted 1,882 and 114 ads on the same platforms, respectively. Notably, the BJP targeted its digital campaigns with precision, focusing on specific localities and constituencies that voted in the first phase of elections. In contrast, the Congress avoided constituency-level targeting, excluding several poll-bound constituencies from its ad campaigns. The findings raise concerns about the effectiveness of the MCC in ensuring free and fair elections in India.

As India’s mammoth election unfolds, deepfake technology has emerged as a potential game-changer, with politicians clamoring for its services. Divyendra Singh Jadoun, known as the “Indian Deepfaker,” has encountered numerous requests for unethical uses of deepfakes, including the fabrication of incriminating audio and pornographic images of opponents. Despite his ethical stance against such practices, Jadoun anticipates that many consultants will succumb to these pressures, potentially distorting reality in an election involving over half a billion voters. This incident highlights the urgent need for regulations and ethical guidelines to prevent deepfake-induced chaos in elections, as individuals like Jadoun bear the burden of making responsible choices in the absence of proper oversight.