Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Monday, October 17 cast her vote in the party's polls to elect her successor. Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also accompanied her mother Sonia and cast her vote. When asked by reporters about the polls, Sonia Gandhi said she had been waiting for this for a long time.
Voting began on Monday, October 17 in the Congress presidential polls as senior leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Shashi Tharoor face-off for the post of All India Congress Committee (AICC) chief. Over 9,000 Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) delegates form the electoral college to pick the party chief in a secret ballot.
Voting began at 10 am at the AICC headquarters in New Delhi and at the party's polling booths in state offices across the country. Kharge is considered the favourite for his perceived proximity to the Gandhis and backing by senior leaders, even as Tharoor has pitched himself as the candidate of change. Even though Tharoor has complained about an unfair playing field, both candidates and the party have insisted that there is no "official candidate" and that the Gandhis are impartial during the campaign.
Jairam Ramesh, the Congress national secretary in charge of communications, had told PTI that he has always believed in the Congress strategy of developing a consensus for such stances when asked about the relevance of the polls. He pointed out that K Kamaraj was the most well-known practitioner of this strategy in the post-Nehruvian period.
हमारे लिए लोकतंत्र हमारी धमनियों में रक्त के साथ बहने वाला विचार है और इसकी हर हाल में रक्षा करेंगे, मजबूत करेंगे।
— Congress (@INCIndia) October 17, 2022
कांग्रेस मुख्यालय में अध्यक्ष पद के लिए जारी मतदान और कांग्रेस अध्यक्ष श्रीमती सोनिया गांधी जी। pic.twitter.com/FyccfkWW0b
The last election for the party's top position was held in 2000, the year Jitendra Prasada suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Sonia Gandhi. Additionally, after more than 24 years, a non-Gandhi will be in charge as Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra decided not to run for party president.