With the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections approaching next year, the Congress has reportedly sought to contest more than 200 seats in the state, setting the stage for a potentially difficult seat-sharing negotiation with its INDIA bloc ally, the Samajwadi Party (SP). The Congress is banking on its performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and an expanding organisational network to justify its demand, but whether the SP will agree to such a large allocation remains a major question for the opposition alliance.
The Congress has begun preparing its electoral strategy for Uttar Pradesh with an ambitious demand that could shape the political equation between the two principal constituents of the INDIA bloc in the state. According to sources, the party has identified more than 200 Assembly constituencies where it believes it has a reasonable basis to seek representation in the seat-sharing arrangement with the Samajwadi Party.
The demand reflects the Congress leadership’s attempt to translate its recent electoral performance into a stronger bargaining position. Although the party won six Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh in the 2024 general elections, it believes its performance across individual Assembly segments provides a broader basis for identifying constituencies where it can mount a competitive challenge.
As part of this exercise, the Congress has reportedly divided constituencies into four categories—A, B, C and D—based on the previous general election results. The classification is intended to help the party distinguish between constituencies where its electoral prospects appear stronger and those requiring greater organisational investment. Particular attention is being given to Assembly segments where the party performed relatively well during the parliamentary elections.
The Congress is also pointing to its nationwide Sangathan Srijan Abhiyan, an organisational initiative that it believes has strengthened its grassroots presence. The leadership’s argument is that improved organisational capacity, combined with constituency-level electoral assessments, warrants a larger share of seats than the party might otherwise have sought.
However, the number of seats being claimed is only one part of the challenge. The Congress must convince its ally that its assessment of electoral strength can translate into actual victories in a state where the Samajwadi Party has a much more extensive political footprint.
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