BENGALURU: Fielding over 70 new faces in the May 10 Assembly elections may work in favour of the ruling BJP by overcoming anti-incumbency in many pockets and also bringing in more votes. Most surveys have predicted a fractured mandate in Karnataka with none of the major parties crossing the 100-seat mark. A BJP internal survey too gives similar figures. Party sources said that one of the findings of the survey is that voters are in favour of the party, but not sitting MLAs in many segments. Of the total 224 constituencies, 30 per cent of the seats have been given to newcomers. BJP has tried and tested this strategy of changing candidates and giving tickets to new faces in some recent polls in other states.
A senior leader, requesting anonymity, told The New Indian Express the selection process was from the booth level, where party workers were given the opportunity to name three people from their constituency. “This is a democratic process to elect leaders. We have learnt that in a few constituencies, party workers were not happy with the sitting MLA or the former MLA whom we considered as a candidate.”
He said elections cannot be won without the support of party workers who reach every corner. “This is also one of the reasons why we have given tickets to new faces. Many work for the party without coming to the mainstream. By changing candidates, we are gaining in those segments as we are keeping the faith of party workers intact” he added.
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi said that in some constituencies, elected representatives would have been active, done good work and remained popular. But in some pockets, after two to three terms, there will be anti-incumbency. It may be against the MLA, and not the party. “We have done similar exercises in Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and even Uttarakhand and we have been successful. We are confident that we will come back to power. The new faces will also give a fresh push and we will win with a thumping majority,” he added.