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Video Editor: Purnendu Pritam
The contest in Madhya Pradesh (MP) has fairly been binary with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) holding the top office for 15 years, of which Shivraj Singh Chouhan has been the chief minister for 13 years.
So, will this time the BJP secure MP for a fourth term or will the Congress add the state to its tally ahead of the 2019 polls?
One of the biggest hurdles for the BJP now is, anti-incumbency.
In 2013, the BJP got 44.88 percent of the vote share ahead of the Congress by 8.5 percent who got 36.38 percent of the vote share.
But the recent opinion polls suggest a strong anti-incumbency factor. In fact, the CSDS and C-Voter polls have also predicted a tough fight between the BJP and Congress.
However, there are other factors that the BJP needs to worry about.
Congress has entered into an arrangement with a tribal outfit called JAYS which has made inroads in the state's tribal areas in recent months.
JAYS going with the Congress could mean that the tribal vote may go as a block to the Congress.
Adivasis make up 23 percent of Madhya Pradesh’s voter population. However, BSP is likely to split the oppressed caste vote bank because they have refused to enter into a pre-poll alliance with the Congress.
In 2013, the BSP had a small but significant 6.29 percent vote share.
Most likely, if the BJP wins, Shivraj Singh Chouhan stays on as the chief minister.
And for the Congress, the front-runners would be Kamal Nath, who is leading the party’s campaign in the state or Jyotiraditya Scindia.
However, who will form the government in the state will be known on 11 December.
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