Cameraperson: Shiv Kumar Maurya
Editor: Abhishek Sharma
The 10 May exit polls have almost across the board predicted that the Congress will be the single largest party in Karnataka. Watch The Quint's analysis of the three possible outcomes going ahead.
However, a majority of these exit polls are leaning towards a hung assembly, predicting that the congress will fall short of the midway mark of 113 including ABP-Cvoter, TV9-Bharatvansh-Polstrat, ZEE Matrize, and Republic P-MARQ.
There are three possibilities here at play.
If Congress Wins By A Slender Margin
Such a result may work in favour of Congress leader DK Shivakumar. The leader, often referred to as the party’s in-house crisis manager, may be able to use such a scenario to his advantage in the race to becoming the CM. He is also known to have a better equation with JD-S compared to Siddaramaiah.
If Congress Wins By A Sweeping Margin
If the Congress wins by a sweep, then the scales may tilt in favour of party leader and former CM Siddaramaiah . He enjoys widespread popularity and was the number one CM choice in most opinion polls and exit polls.
Now both these scenarios are likely to intensify the ongoing churn in the BJP, with multiple top leaders already having jumped ship to the Congress.
If There Is A Hung Verdict
The third possibility, as predicted by a number polls, is that of a hung assembly. In such a scenario, the JDS which has been given anywhere between 20 to 30 seats by the exit polls, is likely to emerge as the kingmaker ultimately deciding the future of the Congress and BJP as far as Karnataka is concerned.
The election results are out on 13th May. Stay tuned to the quint as we track the results closely.
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