The 2009 Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly election was held in April 2009, concurrently with the 2009 Indian general election. The elections were concluded in two phases, on 16 April 2009 and 23 April 2009. The results were declared on 16 May 2009. The incumbent Indian National Congress (INC) retained power in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly, winning 156 seats, though with a reduced majority compared to the previous term. The main opposition, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) won 92 seats. The INC Legislature party re-elected incumbent Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy as its leader, thereby re-nominating him to the post.
Previous assembly In the 2004 Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly election, the INC swept the state, winning 185 of the 294 seats in the Assembly. The INC's pre-poll alliance partners, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and the Left parties also performed well, winning 26 and 15 seats respectively, taking the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) total to 226 seats. As leader of the INC, Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy was invited by Governor Surjit Singh Barnala to form the government.
The Government completed its full five-year term, with the tenure of the Legislative Assembly set to expire on 30 May 2009. The Election Commission of India (ECI) decided to hold the Assembly elections simultaneously with the general election. Polling in each Assembly constituency was conducted in the same phase as the election to the corresponding Parliamentary constituency under which it fell.
Background Following the 2008 Lok Sabha vote of confidence, the Left Front withdrew its support to the INC in Andhra Pradesh as well. The TDP and the TRS subsequently aligned with the Left parties as part of the national Third Front, forming an alliance in the state known as the "Maha Kutami", which translates to "Grand Alliance" in Telugu. The alliance positioned itself in opposition to both the INC, which it accused of corruption, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which it describes as communal. During the same period, actor Chiranjeevi entered active politics by launching the Praja Rajyam Party (PRP), presenting it as a centrist alternative focused on social justice and clean governance. The PRP's entry further split the anti-INC vote.
However, the Maha Kutami faced internal challenges, including seat-sharing disputes and ideological differences among its constituent parties. After polling had concluded but before the counting of votes, the TRS shifted its stance by extending support to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by BJP. The party later denied formally joining the NDA, clarifying that it had only offered external support, a move that attracted political controversy and further highlighted the fragility of pre-poll alliances during the election period.
The election revolved around several key issues. The demand for a separate Telangana state was a major factor, particularly influencing the TRS and constituencies in the Telangana region, present-day Telangana.
Schedule Poll eventDate Phase 1 Phase 2 Date of announcement2 March 2009 Notification date 23 March 2009 28 March 2009 Last date for filing nomination 30 March 2009 4 April 2009 Scrutiny of nomination 31 March 2009 6 April 2009 Last date for withdrawal of nomination 2 April 2009 8 April 2009 Date of poll 16 April 2009 23 April 2009 Date of counting of votes16 May 2009 No. of constituencies 154 140
Parties and alliances Alliance/Party Flag Symbol LeaderSeats contestedIndian National Congress D. Srinivas294Maha KutamiTelugu Desam Party N. Chandrababu Naidu 218+7282+10Telangana Rashtra Samithi K. Chandrashekar Rao 39+6 Communist Party of India (Marxist) B. V. Raghavulu 13+5Communist Party of India K. Narayana 12+2Bharatiya Janata Party Bandaru Dattatreya271All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen Akbaruddin Owaisi8Praja Rajyam Party Chiranjeevi288Lok Satta Party Jaya Prakash Narayana246
Candidates