The 2008 Karnataka Legislative Assembly election took place in three phases on 10, 16 and 22 May 2008 in all the 224 assembly constituencies in Karnataka, India. The elections were conducted to elect a government in the state of Karnataka for the next five years. The votes were counted on 25 May, and due to the use of electronic voting machines, all the results were out by the afternoon itself. The Bharatiya Janata Party emerged victorious winning 110 seats. Although the party fell short of a clear majority, it was able to form the government with the support of six independents. This was the first time BJP came to power on its own in Karnataka and any south Indian state.
Background In the 2004 Karnataka elections, the BJP emerged as the single largest party winning 79 out of the 224 seats. However, the Indian National Congress with 65 members and the Janata Dal (Secular) with 58 members formed a coalition government with Dharam Singh of the Congress as Chief minister. However, in early 2006, the JD(S) withdrew its support to the government and instead formed an alliance with the BJP and H. D. Kumaraswamy of the JD(S) became chief minister. The arrangement was based on an agreement that Kumaraswamy would be the chief minister for the first 20 months and B.S. Yeddyurappa of the BJP would be chief minister for the next 20 months.
The alliance between the BJP and the JD(S) collapsed in October 2007 after Kumaraswamy refused to let Yeddyurappa take over as chief minister as had been agreed upon in 2006. They briefly got together and formed a short-lived government headed by Yeddyurappa in November 2007, but it quickly collapsed due to disagreements over power-sharing. As a result, the state came under the president's rule and new elections were called for.
Schedule
The Election Commission of India announced that polling would be held in a three phases on 10th, 16th and 22 May, and that results would be declared on 25 May.
It also declared that the provisions of the Model Code of Conduct "came into force with immediate effect" with the said announcement. EventDatePhase-IPhase-IIPhase-IIINo. of assembly constituencies896669 Date for nominations 16 April 2008 22 April 200826 April 2008 Last date for filing nominations 22 April 2008 29 April 20083 May 2008 Date for scrutiny of nominations 24 April 2008 30 April 20085 May 2008 Last date for withdrawal of candidatures 26 April 2008 2 May 20087 May 2008 Date of poll 10 May 2008 16 May 200822 May 2008Hours of poll7:00 AM to 5:00 PM Date of counting 25 May 2008 Date before which the election shall be completed 28 May 2008
Parties and alliances
PartyFlagSymbolLeaderContesting seatsBharatiya Janata Party B. S. Yediyurappa224
PartyFlagSymbolLeaderContesting seatsIndian National CongressMallikarjun Kharge222
PartyFlagSymbolLeaderContesting seatsJanata Dal (Secular)H. D. Kumaraswamy219
Campaign The state was the first in India to vote after the electoral constituencies had been redrawn based on new population data. The BJP campaigned on the high rate of inflation and criticized the national United Progressive Alliance government for being soft on terrorism. The party called on the voters to give the party a chance in Karnataka.
The main election plank of the party was the betrayal of the JD(S) and the good budgets presented by Yeddyurappa when he was finance minister in the coalition government. The Congress party pledged to reign in prices, improve the infrastructure of the state, and provide a stable government.
Results
Parties and coalitionsPopular voteSeatsVotes%±ppWon+/−Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)88,57,75433.865.53110 31 Indian National Congress (INC) 90,91,36434.760.5180 15Janata Dal (Secular) (JDS)49,59,25218.961.8128 30Janata Dal (United) (JDU)86,7350.331.730 5Independents (IND)18,10,5256.920.0667Others13,50,6755.171.5404 Total 2,61,56,305 100.00 224 ±0Valid votes2,61,56,30599.94Invalid votes15,8120.06Votes cast / turnout2,61,72,11764.87Abstentions 1,41,47,82535.14Registered voters 4,03,19,942 Results by district +DistrictSeatsBJPINCJD(S)INDBelagavi189720Bijapur85300Kalaburagi125610Bidar62310Raichur72320Koppal52111Gadag44000Dharwad76100Uttara Kannada62220Haveri65100Ballari98100Chitradurga62112Davanagere86200Shivamogga75200Udupi54100Chikkamagaluru54100Dakshina Kannada84400Tumakuru113431Chikkaballapur50410Kolar62211Bengaluru Urban28171010Bengaluru Rural42200Ramanagara40220Mandya70241Hassan70250Kodagu22000Mysuru112810Chamarajanagar40400Total22411080286
Results by constituency Source: