Congress Secures 5 Karnataka MLC Seats Amid Cross Voting

The ruling Congress party secured a decisive victory in the Karnataka Legislative Council elections on Thursday, capturing five out of seven contested seats. The triumph is largely driven by significant cross-voting from opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janata Dal (Secular) lawmakers during a secret ballot at Vidhana Soudha.

BENGALURU: Five candidates representing the governing Congress party secured seats in the Legislative Council following polling and counting processes on Thursday. The success of the fifth Congress contender is directly linked to cross-voting by legislators from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Janata Dal (Secular). Lawmakers cast their ballots through a secret voting system established at Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru.

The primary opposition faction, the Bharatiya Janata Party, saw its candidates win two of the seats it contested. Meanwhile, the Janata Dal (Secular), participating in an active electoral alliance with the BJP, fielded a solitary candidate who ultimately lost the race.

The legislative election was organized to fill 7 vacant seats within the MLC chamber. Voting to select these new upper house representatives was conducted entirely by state MLAs. Records show that 222 out of 224 eligible MLAs participated in this Council election.

The voting pool shrunk because Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni faced disqualification following a murder conviction while representing the Dharwad Assembly seat. Additionally, Hiriyur MLA D. Sudhakar, who previously held office as the Minister of Planning and Statistics, passed away. Election authorities also declared one ballot invalid.

Within the state Assembly, the Congress party maintains a base of 135 MLAs, which expands to 138 when factoring in independent allies. While the party’s baseline strength guaranteed victory for four Congress nominees, the fifth victory by Vinay Karthik is attributed to cross-voting by certain BJP and JD(S) members. Following the declaration, Karthik remarked that his initial expectations of 28 votes were exceeded when his final tally climbed to 32.

Leader of the Opposition R. Ashoka stated that leadership has verified at least 3 instances of cross-voting among party ranks. He affirmed that the identities of those who cross-voted would surface shortly, allowing the party to finalize punitive actions against them.

Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar stated that he could not identify which opposition lawmakers backed his party because the election relied on a secret ballot. Shivakumar noted that he did not personally approach opposition MLAs for votes, suggesting they chose Congress candidates based purely on their own conscience. Concurrently, Congress state manager Randeep Singh Surjewala confirmed that party nominees gathered 151 first-preference votes.

The victorious Congress candidates entering the Legislative Council include state party chief B.K. Hariprasad with 30 votes, Thippanna Kamaknoor with 30 votes, P.V. Mohan with 29 votes, B.S. Shivanna with 30 votes, and Vinay Karthik with 32 votes. For the opposition, BJP candidates R. Raghu and Lingaraj Patil secured 29 and 27 votes respectively, while JD(S) nominee Govindaraju finished with 14 votes.

Future Outlook

The outcome alters the legislative balance, expanding the Congress presence in the Legislative Council to 39 seats. Conversely, the BJP drops to 28 seats, and the JD(S) diminishes to 6 seats. This shift significantly strengthens Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar’s legislative control, smoothing the path for upcoming government bills and welfare policies.

For the opposition alliance, the results signal immediate structural challenges. The BJP faces internal scrutiny to identify the 3 dissident voters, a task that could worsen existing factional rifts. The impact is even more severe for the JD(S), where 8 cross-votes signal deep organizational vulnerabilities that the ruling party may continue to exploit in future state contests.

FAQs

How many seats did the Congress party win in the Karnataka Council election?

The ruling Congress party won 5 out of the 7 vacant Legislative Council seats up for election.

What caused the unexpected victory of the fifth Congress candidate?

The victory of the fifth candidate, Vinay Karthik, was driven by cross-voting from 3 BJP MLAs and 8 JD(S) MLAs who defected during the secret ballot.

What is the new seat configuration in the Karnataka Legislative Council?

Following the 2026 election results, the Congress party holds 39 seats, the BJP drops to 28 seats, and the JD(S) is reduced to 6 seats.

How many MLAs participated in the voting process?

A total of 222 out of 224 state MLAs cast their votes at Vidhana Soudha, with one vote declared invalid by election officials.