HOW SIKKIM HAS VOTED

Intro: Sikkim will go to poll on 12 April 2014. In keeping with the mood, we bring to our readers, on one election per day basis, a look back at Assembly elections in Sikkim since 1979 when the first elections as a part of India were held in the State. The daily capsule will cover one election per day and provide details like the names of victors and runners-up from all 32 constituencies and their respective vote-share. The constituencies had different names and boundaries before 2009 when the new delimitation came into effect. The rest of the country might be undertaking opinion polls and poll projections, but at NOW! we believe that going over past records can help make better sense of ongoing issues and trends.

We hope our readers enjoy this exercise as much as we enjoyed putting it together. We begin the series with Election 1989.

Elections 1989

Total number of voters: 1,92,619 [M: 1,00,942; F: 91,677]

Parties in the fray: Sikkim Sangram Parishad, Rising Sun Party, Denzong People’s Chogpi, Indian National Congress.

The drop in the total number of candidates continued as 1989 saw 118 candidates in the fray against the 195 in 1985. Congress fielded 31 candidates, Rising Sun Party fielded 31 and SSP contested from all 32 seats and won all. This election also saw Pawan Chamling set the record for the highest vote share ever by a candidate in Assembly elections in Sikkim.

Voter Turnout: 72.28% [M: 76.16%; F: 68.01%]

OUTCOME: The Nar Bahadur Bhandari-led SSP swept the polls, bagging 32/32 Assembly constituencies. The party also improved substantially on its vote percentage, securing its best electoral performance record in Sikkim at 70.41% of the votes polled, a marked improvement over the 62.20% of the votes it had won five years earlier in 1985. In 1989, SSP won from Gangtok as well, and with it, heralded the first lady MLA in the Legislative Assembly [not counting the 1974 elections held when Sikkim was still a protectorate of India and not a full-fledged state of India] in Manita Pradhan who won from Gangtok on an SSP ticket. She fought a four-cornered race and bagged 56.40% of the votes. Dilli Prasad Dhungel of Congress came second with 41.19% of the votes while Lall Bahadur Basnet of Rising Sun Party with 2.13% votes and Nima Tshering Bhutia, an Independent, with 0.28% votes were resoundingly trounced. Interestingly, the best performing candidates in Elections 1989 was Pawan Chamling who won from Damthang with a staggering 94.27% of the votes. Of the 4,564 votes polled in Damthang that election, Mr. Chamling received 4,227 votes, 3,970 votes more than his opponent Suraj Kumar Khartan who bagged 257 votes. Mr. Chamling’s then party president, Nar Bahadur Bhandari, came second with 91.53% votes from Soreong. Mr. Chamling holds the record of the most resounding Assembly election performances with his 1989 feat. His 94.27% of the vote-share was a slight improvement on Lachen Gomchen Rinpoche’s victory from the Sangha seat in 1979 with 94.22% of the votes.

  

Constituency	Winner [with party and vote share in brackets]	Runner-up [with party and vote share in brackets]
Yuksom	Sanchaman Subba [SSP, 60.27%]	Ashok Kumar Subba [INC, 35.57%]
Tashiding (ST)	Ugen Pintso Bhutia [SSP, 89.06%]	Chewang Bhutia [INC, 9.51%]
Geyzing	Man Bahadur Dahal  [SSP, 72.41%]	Garjaman Subba [RIS, 21.25%]
Dentam	Padam Lall Gurung [SSP, 74.14%]	Pushpa Mani Chettri [RIS, 13.13%]
Barmiok	Birbal Subba [SSP, 69.25%]	Ram Chandra Poudyal [RIS, 26.42%]
Rinchenpong (ST)	Chong Lhamu Bhutia [SSP, 70.05%]	Phur Tshering Lepcha [INC, 24.30%]
Chakung	Taraman Rai [SSP, 83.27%]	Rastaman Rai [Indp, 12.04%]
Soreong	Nar Bahadur Bhandari [SSP, 91.53%]	Pahalman Subba [INC, 7.77%]
Daramdin	Padam Bdr Gurung [SSP, 77.94%]	Ram Bahadur Limbu [INC, 19.92%]
Jorthang-Nayabazar	Bhim Raj Rai [SSP, 76.11%]	Rajan Gurung [INC, 20.09%]
Ralong (ST)	Sonam Gyatso Kaleon [SSP, 89.74%]	Dorjee Dazom Bhutia [INC, 9.00%]
Wak	Bedu Singh Pant [SSP, 88.63%]	Suk Bahadur Rai [INC, 6.99%]
Damthang	Pawan Kumar Chamling [SSP, 94.27%]	Suraj Kumar Khartan [INC, 5.73%]
Melli	Dilli Ram Basnet [SSP, 75.69%]	Girish Chandra Rai [Indp, 13.96%]
Rateypani-West Pendam (SC)	Chandra Kumar Mohra [SSP, 75.21%]	Madhukar Darjee [INC, 13.33%]
Temi-Tarku	Indra Bahadur Rai [SSP, 75.10%]	Badrinath Pradhan [Indp, 17.18%]
Central Pendam-East Pendam	Sukumar Pradhan [SSP, 58.85%]	Yoganidhi Bhandari [RIS, 33.75%]
Rhenock	Kharananda Upreti [SSP, 60.27%]	Kiran Chettri [INC, 33.38%]
Regu	Rajendra Prasad Uprety [SSP, 57.69%]	Karna Bahadur [INC, 36.26%]
Pathing (ST)	Ram Lepcha [SSP, 68.75%]	Sangay Dorjee [INC, 28.99%]
Loosing-Pacheykhani	Rupraj Rai [SSP, 52.26%]	Ram Chandra Poudyal [RIS, 44.03%]
Khamdong (SC)	Birkhaman Ramukami [SSP, 71.26%]	Ganga Darjee [RIS, 20.82%]
Djongu (ST)	Sonam Choda Lepcha [SSP, 73.02%]	Athup Lepcha [INC, 25.47%]
Lachen-Mangshila (ST)	Tasa Tengey Lepcha [SSP, 68.09%]	Nimching Lepcha [INC, 28.66%]
Kabi Tingda (ST)	Hangu Tshering Bhutia [SSP, 58.05%]	Kalzang Gyatso [INC, 40.76%]
Rakdong Tintek (ST)	Phuchung Bhutia [SSP, 62.74%]	Rinzing Tongden [INC, 30.51%]
Martam (ST)	Chamla Tshering Bhutia [SSP, 49.37%]	Samten Tshering [INC, 28.05%]
Rumtek (ST)	Ongay Tob Bhutia [SSP, 65.29%]	Sonam Pintso Wangdi [INC, 28.76%]
Assam Lingjey (ST)	Sonam Dubden Lepcha [SSP, 61.72%]	Sherab Palden [INC, 30.98%]
Ranka (ST)	Dorji Tshering [SSP, 61.81%]	Sonam Tshering Lepcha [INC, 34.93%]
Gangtok	Manita Pradhan [SSP, 56.40%]	Dilli Prasad Dhungel [INC, 41.19%]
Sangha	Namkha Gyaltsen [SSP, 54.72%]	Bazing [Indp, 28.65%]