The winning candidates in the recent Assam Assembly elections received greater voter support than their counterparts in the 2021 polls, a study by the Association for Democratic Reforms and Assam Election Watch has shown.

The study found that the winners represented a larger share of the electorate across the state.

The assessment, based on voting data from all 126 Assembly constituencies that went to the polls on April 9, highlighted a rise in electoral participation. Voter turnout increased to 86.25 per cent this year from 82.24 per cent recorded during the previous Assembly elections.

The report noted that successful candidates secured a larger proportion of votes than in 2021. On average, winning candidates polled 58.11 per cent of the valid votes cast, compared to 54.08 per cent in the last election.

A substantial majority of victors received an outright majority of votes in their constituencies. Out of 126 winners, 110 obtained more than 50 per cent of the valid votes, while only 16 emerged victorious despite securing less than half of the votes cast.

The analysis further showed that elected representatives accounted for an average of 50.12 per cent of all registered voters in their constituencies, a notable increase from 44.47 per cent in 2021, suggesting broader public support.

Among the biggest winners by vote share were BJP candidates. Kaushik Rai topped the list with 81.49 per cent of votes in Lakhipur, followed by Tuliram Ronghang with 75.72 per cent in Rongkhang and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who secured 74.42 per cent of the vote in Jalukbari.

In contrast, the narrowest vote shares among winning candidates were recorded by Wazed Ali Choudhury of the Congress with 41.53 per cent, Rupam Chandra Roy of the BPF with 41.95 per cent, and Sherman Ali Ahmed of the Trinamool Congress with 43.07 per cent.

The BJP emerged as the leading party in terms of vote share, securing 37.81 per cent of all votes cast across the state. The Congress followed with 29.84 per cent, while the AGP and AIUDF accounted for 6.48 per cent and 5.46 per cent respectively. NOTA attracted 1.23 per cent of the total votes.

The report identified only two constituencies where the contest was exceptionally close. In Hajo-Sualkuchi, AGP candidate Prakash Chandra Das won by a margin of just 724 votes, while in Bilasipara, AGP's Jibesh Roy won by 2,694 votes.

Several constituencies witnessed landslide victories. Kaushik Rai recorded the highest winning margin at 64.65 percentage points, followed by Tuliram Ronghang at 54.80 percentage points, Himanta Biswa Sarma at 52.35 percentage points and Tanzil Hussain at 50.78 percentage points.

The study also examined the performance of candidates with criminal cases. Of the 21 winners who declared criminal cases, 16 secured more than 50 per cent vote share. Among the 105 elected candidates with no criminal cases, 94 crossed the same threshold.

Women remained underrepresented in the Assembly, with only seven securing seats. However, all seven won with vote shares above 46 per cent. BJP legislator Niso Terangpi registered the highest vote share among women winners at 62.95 per cent.

The report further observed that 63 sitting MLAs retained their seats. None of the re-elected legislators received less than 40 per cent vote share, while 54 of them won with more than half of the votes polled.

On voter dissatisfaction, ADR noted that 2,66,962 voters opted for NOTA, accounting for 1.23 per cent of the 2.16 crore votes cast statewide. Barpeta recorded the highest number of NOTA votes at 5,195.

The election results, announced on May 4, saw the BJP-led NDA return to power in Assam. The BJP alone captured 82 seats in the 126-member Assembly, comfortably surpassing the majority mark. Its allies, the BPF and AGP, won 10 seats each. The Congress secured 19 seats, while the AIUDF and Raijor Dal secured two seats each. The Trinamool Congress managed to win one seat.