In the first electoral test under Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, the ruling Congress secured five of seven Karnataka Legislative Council seats, while BJP won two. Cross-voting by BJP and JD(S) MLAs boosted Congress’s tally beyond expectations, strengthening its position in the Council and signalling internal rifts in the opposition.
Published Date – 18 June 2026, 11:30 PM
Bengaluru: In the first electoral battle since the new government under Chief Minister D K Shivakumar took charge in Karnataka, the ruling Congress on Thursday won five of the seven Legislative Council seats that went to polls, while the opposition BJP bagged two.
The results also brought to light cross-voting by BJP and JD(S) legislators in favour of Congress candidates, as the total number of votes received by the ruling party is 151, which is 11 votes more than the expected 140 votes, sources said.
Eight candidates were in the fray for seven MLC seats to be elected by MLAs, for which voting was held on Thursday at Vidhana Soudha. Votes were subsequently counted in the evening.
Five candidates fielded by the Congress — Thippannappa Kamknoor, P V Mohan, B K Hariprasad (KPCC president), Shivanna B S, and Vinay Karthik Prakash — emerged victorious. BJP’s two candidates — Lingaraj Patil and Raghu R — also won. JD(S)’ lone candidate, Govindaraju, faced defeat.
Congress win in the election is seen as a morale booster for new CM Shivakumar and the party’s new State President B K Hariprasad. The party’s success in garnering more votes than expected, especially from other parties, while keeping its own tally intact amid fears of internal cross-voting, reflects their leadership and organisational skills, a senior party functionary said.
For the BJP, the cross-voting seems to have come as a “surprise” and is seen as a major setback amid factional rifts within and discontent about the state leadership, a leader said. For the JD(S), this result reflects the vulnerabilities it may face in future with the emergence of Shivakumar, a Vokkaliga strongman, as CM.
The polls were held as the terms of seven MLCs — Congress leaders Naseer Ahmed, Tippannappa, and B K Hariprasad, BJP leaders N Nagaraju (MTB), Prathap Simha Nayak K, and Sunil Vallyapur; and Govindaraju of JD(S) are set to expire upon their retirement on June 30.
According to sources, preliminary information suggests that three BJP and eight JD(S) MLAs allegedly cross-voted in this election, and one BJP MLA’s vote was declared invalid.
From the Congress party, B K Hariprasad received 30 votes, P V Mohan 29 votes, B S Shivanna 30 votes, Tippannappa Kamakanur 30 votes, and Vinay Karthik –who is considered close to Shivakumar — 32 votes, securing victory, according to sources.
From the BJP, Raghu R received 29 votes, and Lingaraj Patil received 27 votes, and both were elected. The victory quota for a candidate had been fixed at 27.63 votes. However, Lingaraj Patil failed to reach that quota and ultimately won in the elimination round. Among the votes cast for Raghu, one vote was declared invalid, sources added.
Govindraju, who contested from the JD(S), managed to secure only 14 votes.
In the 224-member Assembly, whose current strength is 222, Congress has 135 MLAs (including Deputy Speaker) and has the support of one from Sarvodaya Karnataka Paksha, two Independents, and two unattached members suspended from BJP — S T Somashekar and Shivaram Hebbar.
The BJP, which has 62 MLAs in the Assembly, had the support of Kalyana Rajya Pragathi Paksha’s G Janardhan Reddy, who is now with the BJP and expelled saffron party leader Basangouda Patil Yatnal. The JD(S) has 18 MLAs.
Meanwhile, following this result, the strength of the Congress in the Legislative Council will increase to 39. The strength of the BJP will decline to 28, while the strength of the JD(S) will fall to 6.
Hailing the Congress party winning 5 seats in the Legislative Council elections, CM Shivakumar said the outcome reflected legislators’ support for the government’s welfare programmes and the interests of the people of the state.
“Today, all legislators have expressed their confidence. Members across party lines have stood in support of us. Along with that, all our legislators have remained united,” he said.
On allegations of cross-voting, Shivakumar said he neither sought support from legislators of other parties nor knew who had voted for whom because the election was conducted through a secret ballot.
Congress general secretary in-charge of Karnataka, Randeep Singh Surjewala, described the result as a significant endorsement of the Congress government and its welfare guarantees.
Admitting cross-voting by BJP MLAs, senior party leader R Ashoka said that those who betrayed the party will be identified and a decision will be taken on action against them.
BJP State President Vijayendra said, “Who did cross-voting and why? Once we get information, the party will decide.”
Ahead of voting on Thursday, both Congress and JD(S) had sequestered their legislators in separate resorts on the city outskirts, amid fear of possible cross-voting.
Earlier in the day, stating that they voted according to their conscience, Somashekar and Hebbar said, neither the BJP nor the JD(S) contacted them seeking votes, while Shivakumar contacted them and sought support for the Congress candidate.
Meanwhile, accusing Yatnal of violating secrecy by writing to the BJP national president on whom he would vote for, Congress objected to his vote, but the returning officer rejected the appeal.
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