Congress Optimistic About 2026 Assam Assembly Elections

Congress Prepares for Upcoming Elections

Guwahati, March 3: As the Election Commission of India is anticipated to announce the schedule for the 2026 Assam Assembly elections soon, the Congress party is expressing confidence in its chances across at least 46 Legislative Assembly Constituencies (LACs) within the state.

Sources from the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) indicate that some current legislators may not be granted candidacy this election cycle.

According to a senior official from the APCC, “Our party's standing has significantly improved over the past four months. Reports from the ground suggest reasons for optimism. We have pinpointed 46 LACs where our victory is either assured or highly likely.”

The official further stated that Congress is poised to secure seats throughout the state. “The BJP is attempting to propagate the idea that Congress is limited to the minority regions. However, post-delimitation, the number of seats with a Muslim majority has decreased.”

Currently, only 19 constituencies have a Muslim electorate exceeding 50%, with 15 of those having over 90% Muslim voters. “We are confident of winning a majority of these seats,” he added.

“Additionally, we have seen a resurgence in other areas of the state. For instance, in Upper Assam and the North Bank districts, there are now 43 seats, and our organizational strength is robust in at least 23 of them, marking a significant improvement from just a few months ago,” he noted.

When asked about the prospects of alliance partners, he remarked, “The combined tally of our allies will likely remain in single digits.”

Congress representatives attributed the delay in finalizing seat-sharing agreements with the Raijor Dal, led by Akhil Gogoi, to their demands. “Raijor Dal is being inflexible, insisting on 12-15 seats, which exceeds their organizational capacity. They are overreaching, but we anticipate they will eventually agree to a lower number,” stated another Congress leader.

He also mentioned that some current MLAs may not receive re-nomination in the upcoming elections. “Our party has conducted independent surveys through external agencies to assess voter sentiment and evaluate our MLAs' performance. The screening committee, led by AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, has also gathered feedback from party workers at the booth and mandal levels. Candidate selection will consider survey results and feedback from the screening committee. Not all sitting MLAs may be granted tickets this time, as winnability will be the primary criterion,” he explained.

A meeting of the screening committee is expected on March 5. “The first list of candidates could be released shortly after that, although subsequent lists may experience delays. The party aims to consider developments within the BJP-led NDA coalition,” he added.

Concerns regarding vote transfer among opposition partners in certain constituencies were also raised. “We must enhance coordination to prevent dissent among party workers at the constituency level and ensure smooth vote transfers among allies. In constituencies like Dalgaon and Dhing, vote transfer may be challenging, but we are eager to avoid similar issues in other areas,” the source stated.

Congress believes there is a growing discontent against the BJP among a significant portion of the electorate. “We need to solidify our strategy to leverage the dissatisfaction among the public towards the government,” concluded the Congress source.