Odd polls in tiny state: What’s unusual about Goa election results?

Goa Assembly elections, where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came close to securing a majority, has emerged as a pivotal factor in the national political framework. BJP won 20 seats, while Congress managed to secure 11 in the 40-seat Assembly.

In addition to being a hung state, Goa was also full of other surprises and oddities. Here are some of the unusual things that were observed in the polls:

A flurry of power couples

Out of the 40 members in the upcoming Goa Assembly, six of them are married to each other. Michael Lobo and his wife Delilah won from the Calangute and Siolim constituencies respectively. 

Two more couples in the Goa Assembly from the BJP are Atanasio Monserrate (Panaji) and wife Jeniffer (Taleigao); Vishwajit Rane (Valpoi) and wife Poriem.

First-timers

Nearly half of the 40 members who will be sitting in the Assembly will be MLA for the first time, according to reports from NDTV.

Out of these, one MLA will be from the Revolutionary Goans, two Independents, eight from Congress, five from the BJP and two from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The potential kingmaker no one wanted

Aleix Reginaldo, who contested the Goa Assembly elections as an Independent candidate, turned out to be a game-changer. Reginaldo was earlier associated with Congress but left in December 2021 to join the Trinamool Congress. Less than a month later, he again switched his mind and left TMC, but was now turned away by Congress too.

Reginaldo, who contested from the Curtorim constituency, later extended his support to BJP, which was just shy of one seat from the majority. The Aam Aadmi Party also turned out to be the joker in Goa’s deck of 40 cards. The Arvind Kejriwal-led party made its debut in Goa and managed to secure two seats.