The Modi Factor in the 2019 Lok Sabha Election: How Critical Was It to the BJP Victory?

Abstract

The BJP victory in the 2019 elections is attributed to a range of factors. This article examines the role of the leadership factor in propelling the BJP to victory in this election. While the Prime Ministerial candidate of the BJP/NDA was clearly the preferred choice, the National Election Study 2019, undertaken by Lokniti-CSDS, indicates that one-thirds of those who supported the BJP would have altered their voting preference if Modi were not to be the Prime Ministerial candidate of the party. The article explores the leadership factor in the 2019 election and concludes that it was a major factor that influenced voter choice.

Strongman: The Extraordinary Leaders of India and the Philippines

“…A third commonality between Modi and Duterte that tallies well with the personalist politics argument is their ability to put themselves squarely in the middle of attention. Modi has been at the centre of BJP’s election campaign since his days as chief minister of Gujarat (Mehta, 2022; Shastri, 2019; Shastri & Syal, 2014), a strategy upheld with great skill and organizational effort by BJP. Slogans such as ‘Emperor of Hindu hearts’, ‘ Vikas purush ’, or ‘ Abki bar, Modi sarkar ’ have all put him at the centre.…”

Age and Party Choice: Generational Shift in India

“…A bulk of the contributions predominantly focus on social-structural factors, including caste (Verma, 2009;Yadav & Palshikar, 2009), gender (Deshpande, 2004(Deshpande, , 2009, religion (Alam, 2009) and location (Falcao, 2009). At the same time, a wide variety of contextual factors have received attention, including economic circumstances (Suri, 2004(Suri, , 2009, leadership (Chhibber & Ostermann, 2014;Shastri, 2009Shastri, , 2019Shastri & Syal 2014;); incumbency and government performance (Chhibber, 2009), governance (Kumar & Ranjan, 2009;Shankar & Sisodia, 2009); alliances (Kailash, 2009;Sridharan, 2004), electoral-systemic features (Palshikar, 2014) and campaign (Palshikar & Suri, 2014;Yadav, 2004). At the same time, there is much overlap between the different explanations.…”

The Rise of Populist Phenomenon in India: Implications for India`s Relation With Pakistan and China

“…Study shows the voters choice is also related to the political leader put forwards as future prime minister. One-thirds of the voter's respondent that their voting preference would have been different if BJP didn't nominate Modi as candidate for the Prime Minister (Shastri, 2019). Likewise, the Modi`s appeal to the electorate resonate equally at all strata's of society, as the party`s strategist immaculately studied the caste equation to formulate a caste-based strategy (Jaffrelot, 2019).…”