2026 to see elections to 72 Rajya Sabha seats; NDA strength likely to go up to 145

Elections to be held in 22 States; senior leaders like Mallikarjun Kharge, Harivansh, H D Deve Gowda, Sharad Pawar set to retire

New Delhi: The year 2026 will see elections to 72 seats in the 245-member Rajya Sabha in which the ruling NDA is likely to win around 50, up from existing 40, while the I.N.D.I.A. bloc may see a decline of five seats from 25.

Taking the Legislative Assembly strength into account, the BJP is likely to win 37 to 38 seats, depending on the number of seats it will be leaving for its allies, while the Congress could see a marginal increase from eight to nine seats. The BJP has 30 seats that will be going to the polls in April, June, July and November.

In 2026, the Congress will cease to have a member in the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat, with Shaktisinh Gohil’s retirement in June while the CPI(M) representation will be restricted to Kerala with the exit of Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, its lone MP from West Bengal, in April. The Congress will have no members in the Rajya Sabha from 17 States and Union Territories.

The precarious numbers for the MVA and recent reverberations in the alliance may mar the prospects of the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) in Maharashtra and could see no representation in the Rajya Sabha as its two MPs are retiring.

At present, the BJP-led NDA has the support of 135 MPs, including seven unattached nominated members, while I.N.D.I.A. bloc has 80 while 29 are unattached to any side. After the elections by November, the NDA strength is likely to be around 145 while I.N.D.I.A. may be around 75.

Elections will be held in 22 States — Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Karnataka, Odisha, West Bengal, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Haryana, Meghalaya, Manipur, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Uttarakhand.

Senior leaders like Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh, former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, NCP(SP)’s Sharad Pawar, Samajwadi Party’s Ramgopal Yadav, Union Ministers Hardeep Puri and Ramdas Athawale will be retiring in 2026. Besides these 72, nominated MP former Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi will retire in March.

The BJP will be gaining one more MP in West Bengal at the cost of the CPI(M) while the Trinamool Congress will retain its four seats. 

Bihar has five seats going to polls with the RJD and the JD(U) holding two each and the RLM one. The BJP is likely to make a claim on two seats while the Opposition will have to struggle to win the fifth seat as the I.N.D.I.A. bloc will be shy of at least six votes. It is also to be seen whether Harivansh returns as Deputy Chairman for the third term.

In Andhra Pradesh, the TDP-led NDA is likely to win all the four seats, with the YSR Congress not managing to hold its three seats. The BJP may also get an extra seat in Andhra Pradesh while it may increase its seats to four in Odisha, ousting the BJD from its two seats. However, the BJP will lose its seat to the JMM in Jharkhand.

The Congress is likely to lose one each seat in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat while it may win one extra seat in Haryana, Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh. While one of the retiring MPs is an Opposition-backed independent, the Congress may stake claim for the seat if there is a consensus.

The existing numbers in Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Meghalaya, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram will remain the same.

Rajya Sabha elections in numbers

• Rajya Sabha members retiring in 2026: 73 (including one nominated MP)

• States from MPs retiring: 22

• Elections for 72 seats to be held in April, June, July, November

• RS polls in States with seats: Uttar Pradesh (10), Maharashtra (7), Tamil Nadu (6), Odisha (5), West Bengal (5), Bihar (5), Karnataka (4), Gujarat (4), Andhra Pradesh (4), Rajasthan (3), Madhya Pradesh (3), Telangana (2), Assam (2), Chhattisgarh (2), Haryana (2), Jharkhand (2), Himachal Pradesh (1), Meghalaya (1), Manipur (1), Arunachal Pradesh (1), Mizoram (1) and Uttarakhand (1)

• Prominent leaders whose term ends in 2026: Mallikarjun Kharge, Harivansh, H D Deve Gowda, Sharad Pawar, Ramgopal Yadav, Hardeep Puri, Digvijaya Singh, Abhishek Singhvi, Tiruchi Siva, Upendra Kushwaha, Priyanka Chaturvedi, Justice Ranjan Gogoi (nominated)

• Congress: No representation from Gujarat after June; no party MPs from 17 States/UTs

• CPI(M): With Bengal MP retiring, party will have only MPs from Kerala

• Existing RS numbers: NDA – 135; I.N.D.I.A. – 80; others – 29; vacant – 1

• Possible numbers after the polls: NDA – 145; I.N.D.I.A. – 75; others – 25