Bhubaneswar: The BJP has established early leads in assembly elections with its candidates ahead of their BJD rivals in at least 76 seats.
According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), BJP candidates are leading in 76 seats while BJD nominees are ahead in 53 constituencies out of 144 seats trends from which are available. Congress candidates have established leads in 12 seats while CPM and others are ahead in one and two seats respectively.
In a surprise turnaround, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is trailing behind his BJP rival Laxman Bag by a margin of 521 votes at the end of the second round of counting. However, the Chief Minister is leading from the Hinjili assembly seat in Ganjam district by a margin of more than 1110 votes from his BJP rival Sisir Kumar Mishra.
According to the latest trends, former president of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) is leading Niranjan Patnaik Bhandaripokhari seat while health minister Niranjan Pujari is trailing behind in Sonepur seat from his BJP rival Pramod Kumar Mahapatra. Finance minister Bikram Keshari Arukha is also trailing in Bhanjanagar assembly seat while BJD veteran and former minister Prasanna Acharya is behind his BJP rival in Rairakhol constituency.
The BJP seems to be sweeping in the Lok Sabha elections in Odisha. Out of the 21 seats, BJP candidates are ahead in 17 seats while BJD nominees are leading in three seat. Congress is leading in one seat.
The ruling BJD is trailing in its traditional Lok Sabha strongholds, Aska, Kendrapada, Cuttack, Berhampur, Jagatsinghpur, Dhenkanal and Bhadrak. Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan and BJP national vice-president Baijayant Panda are leading in Sambalpur and Kendrapara LS seats.