How parties fared in 2021 West Bengal elections and subsequent by-elections

The West Bengal 2026 elections is set to witness a high-stakes electoral battle between All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The West Bengal assembly, comprising of 294 seats, has 215 legislators from TMC and 77 from BJP. Of the remaining two seats, Rashtriya Secular Majlis Party secured victory in Deganga seat, while Kalimpong seat was won by an independent candidate.

The Left parties, which includes CPI(M), and Congress, failed to register victory in a single assembly seat in West Bengal. With their vote share being drastically reduced, BJP is positioned as the central opposition party in West Bengal. On the other hand, Trinamool, ruling the State since 2011 retained its hold in the eastern State in 2021.

TMC’s dominance in 2021

The TMC commanded victory in the 2021 polls, securing 215 of the 290 seats it contested. The poll figure, released by Election Commission of India, suggests the party pulled 48% of the total polled votes in 2021.

However, party supremo Mamata Banerjee lost against BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari by 1,956 votes in Nandigram. She later won from Bhabanipur constituency in a by-election with a record margin of over 58,000 votes. In spite of the loss, BJP managed to garner a record 38% votes in the assembly election.

By-election winners

2021

1. Bhabanipur seat: Mamata Banerjee won the Bhabanipur by-polls after TMC candidate Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay vacated the seat to pave the way for Ms. Banerjee’s third-term as Chief Minister.
2. Dinhata: Trinamool Congress leader Udayan Guha won Dinhata by-election seat after former BJP candidate Nisith Parmanik vacated the seat and went to become MP.
3. Santipur: Trinamool Congress candidate Braja Kishore Goswami won Santipur by-election.
4. Khardaha: Trinamool Congress candidate Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay won Khardaha by-polls.
5. Gosaba: Trinamool Congress candidate Subrata Mondal won Gosaba by-polls.

2022

1. Ballygunge: Trinamool Congress candidate Babul Supriyo won Ballygunge seat. Prior to his victory, Mr. Supriyo was defeated as a BJP candidate in 2021 assembly elections.

2023

1. Sagardighi: Congress candidate Bayron Biswas won Sagardighi by-polls, earlier occupied by Trinamool Congress candidate Subrata Saha.
2. Dhupguri: Trinamool Congress candidate Nirmal Chandra Roy registered a victory in Dhupguri by-polls.

2024: Trinamool Congress candidates Reyat Hossain Sarkar and Sayantika Banerjee lodged a victory in Bhagabangola and Baranagar by-polls, respectively. Further, TMC candidates Krishna Kalyani, Mukut Mani Adhikari, and Madhuparna Thakur, Supti Pandey, won Raiganj, Ranaghat Dakshin, Bagdah, and Maniktala, respectively. Again, the by-polls held for Sitai, Madarihat, Naihati, Harora, Medinipur, and Taldangra, in November 2024 saw victory of Trinamool Congress candidates.

2025

1. Kaliganj: Trinamool Congress candidate Alifa Ahmed scripted victory in Kaliganj by-polls in 2025.

Key cabinet ministers in West Bengal

1. Health and Family Welfare, Home Affairs, Information and Cultural Affairs, Land and Land Reforms & Refugee Relief and Rehabilitation, Minority Affairs, Personnel and Administrative Reforms, and Planning Statistics: TMC Supremo Mamata Banerjee heads these seven portfolios since Trinamool Congress was elected to power in 2021. Interestingly, Ms. Banerjee took reigns of the Finance department for five months, starting from November 2021 to March 2022. She assumed the charge after veteran Finance Minister Amit Mitra stepped due to health reasons.
2. Consumer Affairs: Senior Trinamool Congress leader Biplab Mitra serves as Minister for Consumer Affairs department. Mr. Mitra. Recognised for his instrumental efforts in setting up Trinamool’s base in North Bengal, he won Harirampur seat in 2021, defeating his rival BJP candidate by a margin of over 22,000 votes.
3. Higher Education: Bratya Basu presently serves as the Higher Education Minister in Mamata Banerjee’s cabinet. An academician in his past stints, Mr. Basu assumed the role in 2021, replacing Partha Chaterjee. He is a MLA from Dum Dum seat who defeated his rival BJP candidate by a margin of over 26,000 votes.
4. Housing: Senior Trinamool Congress leader Aroop Biswas presently serves the role of Housing Minister in West Bengal government. An MLA from Tollyganj seat, Mr. Biswas defeated his rival BJP candidate Babul Supriyo by a margin of over 50,000 votes.
5. Information Technology and Electronics: Trinamool Congress MLA Babul Supriyo presently serves as the Minister for Information Technology and Electronics. Previously under BJP’s fold, Mr. Supriyo switched to Trinamool Congress after the party emerged as the winner in 2021 assembly polls. He won Ballygunge Assembly by-election as a TMC candidate, after facing defeat in 2021 elections being a BJP candidate.
6. Labour and Law: Senior Trinamool Congress leader Moloy Ghatak presently serves as the Labour and Law Minister in West Bengal cabinet. He is a MLA from Asansol Uttar seat, who defeated his rival BJP candidate Krishnendu Mukherjee by a margin of over 21,000 votes.
7. Industry, Commerce and Enterprises, Women and Child Development and Social Welfare: Senior Trinamool Congress politician Sashi Panja heads the Industry, Commerce and Enterprises and Women and Child Development and Social Wefare portfolio in Mamata Banerjee’s cabinet. A former corporate professional, she is a MLA from Shyampukur assembly seat since past three terms (2011,2016, and 2021).

Key opposition leaders in West Bengal

1. Suvendu Adhikari: Earlier known as a close confidante of Mamata Banerjee, Adhikari switched to BJP in 2020, becoming the party’s face in the state. Presently serving his role as Leader of Opposition in West Bengal, he is identified to be one of the astute opposition voices in the state.
2. Mihir Goswami: Following a 22-year-old stint in TMC, Mr. Goswami switched to BJP in 2020. Currently serving as the deputy leader of opposition, he defeated his rival TMC candidate Rabindra Nath Ghosh by a margin of over 23,000 votes in 2021.
3. Sushil Barman: An MLA for Mathabhanga constituency, Sushil is one of the emerging faces among the ranks of key BJP leaders in the state. He won Mathabhanga seat by a margin of over 26,000 votes.
4. Sukumar Roy: A senior BJP leader, Mr. Roy is presently serving as the BJP district president for Coochbehar seat where he defeated TMC’s Binay Krishna Barman by a margin of 6.02% votes.
5. Sujan Chakraborty: A veteran leader of CPI (M), Mr. Chakraborty has played his duties as a MP and legislators in the past terms. Despite being a stern critic of ECI’s SIR exercise, he maintained a critical stance against both BJP and TMC since quite a long period.
6. Samik Bhattacharya: A senior BJP leader in West Bengal, Bhattacharya’s efforts has been instrumental in setting up the foundation for BJP in West Bengal. For the upcoming 2026 West Bengal elections, he is actively leading BJP’s outreach programmes to civil societies and organisations to consolidate the party’s position.