Times Now-C-Voter opinion poll: TMC likely to retain power in Bengal, BJP may clinch 37% votes this time

The survey also sought the response of 17,890 people on who should be the next chief minister of Bengal

The West Bengal Assembly election 2021 is set to be a closely-fought contest, with both the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the BJP leaving no stone unturned to convince the voters about their sincerity to work for the state. Even the Sanjukta Morcha of the CPI(M), Congress and the Indian Secular Front has increased the intensity of their campaigning as the voting in Bengal is set to begin from March 27.

According to the Times Now-C-Voter opinion poll, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee-led TMC has a clear advantage over others in Bengal. But the BJP is also not far behind and will pose a serious challenge to Mamata's aspiration to become the chief minister for the third consecutive time.

As per the survey, TMC may win 160 seats out of the total 294 in the fray, which is 51 seats lesser than the seats it won in 2016. It predicts that the BJP will hugely improve on its performance in the 2016 Assembly polls when it got three seats and win 112 seats in the 2021 polls. The 'Sanjukta Morcha' is likely to be at the third spot with 22 seats.

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The difference between the vote percentage of the TMC and the BJP is likely to narrow in the upcoming elections. The TMC is predicted to get 42.1 per cent of votes, 2.8 per cent than what it got in the 2016 Assembly polls, while the BJP will probably increase its 10.2 per cent of votes in 2016 to 37.4 per cent in 2021. The Sanjukta Morcha may get 13 per cent votes.

In terms of the projected range of seats, the TMC may win in 152 to 168 constituencies, BJP in 104 to 120 seats, and Sanjukta Morcha is predicted to bag 18 to 26 seats.

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The survey also sought the response of 17,890 people on who should be the next chief minister, and it seems like that Mamata Banerjee is still the crowd favourite. A whopping 54.9 per cent want the TMC supremo to lead the state, whereas 32.3 per cent rooted for Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh. They are followed by BJP leader Mukul Roy with 6.5 per cent votes.