Between 2019 and 2024, the BJP’s Lok Sabha seat tally fell from 303 to 240, with most of the losses concentrated in four Hindi heartland states – Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar and Haryana. With 49 seats dropped here, these four states contributed the most to the BJP’s overall reduction in seats.

However, the party also gained 23 new seats across six states and one Union Territory (UT), having lost a total of 86 of the 303 seats it won in 2019 for a net loss of 63 seats.

In contrast, its vote share shrunk only marginally. In 2019, the BJP had secured a vote share of 37.7%. In the 2024 elections, the results of which were declared on Tuesday, the BJP’s vote share fell by 1.2%.

Where the BJP lost

The biggest state in terms of losses for the BJP was Uttar Pradesh, where the party won 62 seats in 2019, and got 29 less this time, falling to 33. The party’s vote share also declined by 8.61% in the state from 2019.

BJP BJP losses in seats and vote shares.

In the other Hindi heartland states where it saw losses, the BJP was down by 10 seats in Rajasthan, five in Bihar and five in Haryana.

Festive offer

The BJP also recorded a decline in seats in Maharashtra (loss of 14 seats), Karnataka (eight seats), West Bengal (six seats), Jharkhand (three seats), Punjab (two seats), and Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur. and Chandigarh (one seat each).

In Arunachal Pradesh, the BJP retained both its Lok Sabha seats despite recording a 10% decline in vote share. The party had a 58.9% vote share in 2019, but that figure came down to 48.87% in 2024.

The party retained all the four seats in Himachal Pradesh, although its vote share declined by 13.27% points. In 2019, the party’s vote share was 69.71%, with that figure coming down to 56.44% in 2024.

The BJP’s vote share declined to almost half in Jammu and Kashmir, where it recorded a 24.36% vote share in 2024 compared to 46.68% in 2019. However, it did not contest in the 3 seats of Kashmir this time.

Likewise, the BJP’s vote share fell to half in Manipur, where the party did not win either of the two seats and got a 16.58% vote share. In 2019, it won one seat with a vote share of 34.33%.

In Rajasthan, the BJP recorded a 10% decline in vote share and in Jharkhand, a 7% decline.

Where the BJP made gains

The BJP’s most significant gains came from Odisha, where it won 20 of the total 21 Lok Sabha seats, up by 12 from 2019. The party’s vote share also jumped, to 45.34% compared to 38.88% in 2019.

Among the southern states, the BJP doubled its figures in Telangana by winning eight seats, and won three seats in Andhra Pradesh, where it failed to win any in 2019. In Telangana, its vote share increased to 35% from 19.65%, while in Andhra, its vote share rose to 11.28% from 0.99% in 2019.

BJP BJP gains in seats and vote shares.

In Tripura, the BJP retained both the Lok Sabha seats with a 7.72% increase in its vote share.

Although it lost all the seats in Punjab, it increased its vote share from 9.74% in 2019 to 18.56%.

Congress’s gains and losses

The Congress emerged as the largest party among the Opposition INDIA bloc members, improving its tally to 99 from 52 in 2019. The party gained 50 new seats across 12 states and lost six seats it won in 2019 across five states and one UTs. Its vote share in 2024 improved to 21.19% from 19.67% of 2019. Out of the 50 seats it gained, 20 seats are in four Hindi heartland states, where the BJP suffered the maximum loss of seats.

BJP Congress gains in seats and vote shares.

The party’s biggest gains came in Maharashtra, where it won 12 seats and benefited from the discontent among the public against the BJP and its allies. However, its vote share in the state remained almost the same – 16.92%, marginally up from 16.41% in 2019.

The party also increased its tally in Karnataka by eight seats and its vote share by 13.32% points.

The Congress also gained in Rajasthan by winning eight seats. In 2019, the BJP had swept the state, winning all 25 Lok Sabha seats.

In Haryana, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh, the Congress increased its tally by five seats each. In UP, where it won only one seat in 2019, it increased its tally with help from its ally in the Samajwadi Party (SP). The Congress’ vote share in UP also rose from 6.36% in 2019 to 9.46%. In Telangana, the Congress’s vote share jumped considerably to 40.1% from 29.79% in 2019.

Among its other gains, the Congress tally rose by two seats in Bihar and one each in Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand. It won the lone seats of Nagaland and Chandigarh as well. In Gujarat, which the BJP had swept in 2019, the Congress won one seat this time.

In Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Congress lost one seat each.

The notable declines in vote shares for the Congress came in Punjab (14.28%), Puducherry (4.41%) and Goa (3.84%).