New Delhi: The Congress The party experienced a mixed trajectory in 2024, facing both significant electoral challenges and opportunities. Party passed through important route Lok Sabha elections And in various state elections, he achieved modest successes while facing substantial setbacks in his attempt to gain political prominence.
At the national level, the Congress improved its parliamentary presence, increasing its Lok Sabha seats from 52 in 2019 to 99 in 2024, strengthening the party. Bharat BlockPosition against BJP. However, state-level results presented a more nuanced picture, with victories often overshadowed by major defeats, underscoring the substantial work required for the party’s revival.
Formation of India Block: Opposition united against BJP
India Bloc emerged as a strong alliance ahead of the 2024 elections, uniting opposition parties to challenge the BJP’s decade-long dominance. The Congress-led alliance included regional giants like Samajwadi Party, NCP (SP), TMC and DMK. The formation of the block was initially prompted by Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, who hosted the first meeting of opposition leaders, laying the groundwork for a unified strategy.
However, Nitish Kumar later switched sides and formed an alliance with the BJP to regain his post as Chief Minister of Bihar. Ultimately he offered his support in the formation of the central government and emerged as a major player in the process.
With its “big tent” approach, the block tried to consolidate anti-BJP votes in the states, focusing on states where regional parties had strongholds.
Lok Sabha Elections 2024: India has lead, but BJP remains intact
The 2024 general elections marked a significant change, as the India Bloc secured 238 seats, more than 100 seats compared to its pre-dissolution strength. And the oldest party fell just one seat short of scoring a century. Despite this improvement, the Congress missed out on becoming the decisive force in the Lok Sabha, as the BJP-led NDA secured 293 seats, including the BJP’s 240 seats.
In Uttar Pradesh, Congress’s alliance with the Samajwadi Party was fruitful, with it winning 44 seats, making a major dent in the BJP’s stronghold, where its seats fell from 62 in 2019. Apart from UP, the alliance performed exceptionally well in the key battleground state. Maharashtra, where it wrested most of the seats from the BJP.
In 2024, the Congress sees its vote share increase by 1.74 percentage points, from 19.46% in 2019 to 21.20%. This growth was reflected in its improved seat numbers.
Meanwhile, despite contesting more seats than in 2019, the BJP saw a decline of 0.73 percentage points in its vote share, falling to 36.57%, and is expected to fall short of the 272-seat mark.
However, this success was offset by poor performance in states like Bihar, where the Congress-RJD alliance failed to make an impact, helping the NDA retain its hold.
Vote Share Comparison: BJP vs Congress
As the BJP’s Lok Sabha seats declined, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was forced to rely on key allies like Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu to maintain his position in power.
Congress depends on allies
Congress appeared to be heavily dependent on its allies in 2024. With the collective efforts of the India Bloc, the opposition secured around 240 seats in the Lok Sabha, marking a strong resurgence. was one of the major contributors Akhilesh YadavSamajwadi Party, which won a remarkable 37 out of 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh, reducing BJP’s 2019 tally of 62 seats to just 33. The biggest shock came when SP snatched the Faizabad seat of Ayodhya from BJP despite it being a high-profile party. Only a few months ago, the Ram Temple consecration ceremony took place under the leadership of PM Modi.
The alliance with the DMK proved equally effective, resulting in a clean sweep in Tamil Nadu, where the BJP failed to win a single seat. DMK’s contribution of 21 seats became a major pillar for the India Bloc. Similarly, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Sharad Pawar’s NCP added significant support, leading to a further decline in the BJP’s dominance.
Role of allies in the revival of Congress within the Indian faction
In state assembly electionsRegional allies did much of the heavy lifting for the Congress. In Jharkhand, fresh from a legal battle, Hemant Soren’s JMM won 34 seats, while the Congress could win only 16 seats. Together, to retain Soren in the CM’s seat, the India Bloc restricted the BJP to 21 seats in the state.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the first assembly elections in more than a decade – and the first after the abrogation of Article 370 – saw a stellar performance by the National Conference, which secured 41 seats in the valley. The Congress got only 6 seats and the BJP achieved its best result in Jammu, yet Omar Abdullah’s National Conference took command and the Congress is set to claim leadership in the Union Territory.
State elections in 2024: Victory and challenges for Congress
Arunachal Pradesh – Congress suffered a major defeat, winning only one out of 60 seats while BJP strengthened its hold with 46 seats.
Sikkim – The ruling Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) swept the elections, leaving no room for the Congress or other opposition parties.
Andhra Pradesh – In Andhra Pradesh elections, Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP contested 144 seats and won a historic victory on 135 seats. Allies Jana Sena and BJP won 21 and 8 seats respectively, while the ruling YSR Congress was reduced to 11 seats. Congress failed to win any seat.
Odisha – In the Odisha elections, Congress won 14 seats, CPI(M) won one seat and independent candidates claimed three. However, the BJP emerged as the dominant force, crossing the majority mark with 78 seats, ending Naveen Patnaik’s 24-year reign and restricting the BJD to just 51 seats.
Haryana – Congress gave a tough fight, but despite close vote share, it lagged behind by securing 37 seats compared to BJP’s 48 seats.
Jammu and Kashmir – In the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections, Abdullah’s National Conference (NC) led the alliance to victory with 42 seats, while Congress got only six seats. BJP performed strongly and won 29 seats in the 90-seat assembly.
Maharashtra – Congress led Maha Vikas Aghadi faced a crushing defeat and BJP won 132 seats. The grand old party got only 16 seats, while other MVA allies also struggled, including Sharad Pawar’s NCP with 10 seats and Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena with 20 seats.
Jharkhand – Congress celebrated easy victory as part of JMM-led grand alliance. The alliance won 56 seats, of which the Congress contributed 16.
Congress under the old guard: A hindrance to revival?
Congress’s frequent decisions to support its veteran leaders have been widely considered a significant factor contributing to its declining performance in the state elections.
In October 2022, the grand old party handed over the presidency to veteran Mallikarjun KhargeSidelining other leading leaders like London-educated, St. Stephen’s alumnus and social media favorite Shashi Tharoor.
In 2018, Kamal Nath was chosen to replace Jyotiraditya Scindia for the seat of Chief Minister in Madhya Pradesh. The government ultimately fell in 2020, after which Scindia joined the BJP, giving him the post of Union minister.
Similarly, in the same year, the choice of Ashok Gehlot over Sachin Pilot for the top Rajasthan post deepened their rivalry, a rift that likely played a major role in the party’s 2023 election defeat in the state.
The party’s support to former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda also led to internal rivalry and tension between Hooda and Kumari Selja. This rift probably contributed to the Congress’s shocking defeat, defying election forecasts.
Under Kharge’s leadership, the party faltered in several state elections, including losing its hold in states like Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
Nevertheless, the Congress showed improvement in the 2024 general elections, with the Bharat Alliance securing 238 seats, an increase of over 100 seats from its previous position. The party itself came close to reaching 100 seats.
year of mixed fortunes
The establishment of the Congress-led opposition Alliance India represented a notable attempt to present a unified front against the BJP. The coalition’s achievements in the Lok Sabha demonstrated the effectiveness of opposition unity, yet setbacks in areas such as Maharashtra revealed the difficulties in maintaining political momentum and unity.
The year 2024 demonstrated the weaknesses of the Congress as well as its patience. In 2025, the India alliance faces the challenge of maintaining its unified stance and converting immediate achievements into lasting political gains, especially with crucial electoral contests in the coming year.
