Madhya Pradesh Election Results 2018: Shivraj Singh Chouhan won in Budhni by a margin of 58,999 votes.
After overnight counting of votes in Madhya Pradesh, the Congress with its 114 seats emerged as the party with most number of seats in the 230-member assembly. But the party is still two short of majority. The ruling BJP has managed 109 seats, Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party got two, Samajwadi Party a single and four seats went to independents.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has won from his traditional Budhni seat by a margin of 58,999 votes, defeating former union minister and senior Congress leader Arun Yadav. However, 13 of his ministers have lost in the assembly election.
While state Revenue Minister Umashankar Gupta lost his seat to Congress' PC Sharma, Sharad Jain, Medical Education Minister and lawmaker from Jabalpur was defeated by Vinay Saxena of the Congress.
Minister of Higher Education Jaibhan Singh Pawaiya lost his Gwalior seat to Congress leader Pradhyuman Singh Tomar by over 11,000 votes.
Congress' Manoj Singh Chaudhary snatched Hatpipliya from Education Minister Deepak Joshi and Health Minister Rustam Singh was defeated by Raghuraj Singh Kansana of the Congress in Morena.
Animal Husbandry Minister Antar Singh Arya lost to Congress candidate Gyarsilal Rawat in Sendhwa (ST) constituency by about 18,000 votes.
Women and Child Development Minister Archana Chitnis lost Burhanpur to Independent candidate Thakur Surendra Singh and Civil Supplies Minister Omprakash Dhurve couldn't save Shahpura from Congress candidate Bhoopendra Maravi.
A cautious Congress, which won't give the BJP any opportunity to stitch an alliance in the state, wrote to Madhya Pradesh governor last night itself seeking permission to form government, even before the final results were announced. Shortly before midnight, senior Congress leader in Madhya Pradesh, Jyotiraditya Scindia, also tweeted a letter from party chief Kamal Nath to Governor Anandiben Patel.
As the seat tally fluctuated through Tuesday, the Congress had approached Mayawati's party, and a senior BSP leader assured that they would do all it can to stop the BJP from coming to power.
Unlike Madhya Pradesh where the Congress will have to work out an arrangement to reach the majority mark, the party will form governments in two other BJP-ruled states with ease.
In Rajasthan, the Congress and its ally Ajit Singh touched the majority mark of 100 seats -- elections were held for 199 of the 200-seat assembly.
Maoist-hit Chhattisgarh has also chosen the Congress over the BJP which has been in power in the state for the last 15 years. Congress won 68 of the 90 seats here.