BJP Leads West Bengal Exit Polls in Bengal Elections 2026
Exit polls on April 30 gave the BJP an edge over the Trinamool Congress in Bengal elections 2026 after West Bengal voted on April 23 and April 29. The state recorded a 92.65% turnout in the second phase, making the forecast harder to dismiss.
In 2021, most exit polls had pointed to a close fight in West Bengal, but the Trinamool Congress won decisively in the final count. This year’s polling process differed from Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, which each voted in a single phase.
West Bengal turnout and timing
West Bengal’s two-phase schedule gave exit polls a larger voting sample than a single-day contest would have provided. Voters cast ballots on April 23 and April 29, and the second phase drew the 92.65% turnout figure that stood out in the statewide count of participation.
Narendra Modi’s BJP is trying to make inroads in three states where it has never held power, and West Bengal is one of the key contests in that effort. The exit-poll edge in the state therefore lands alongside a broader national picture that also had several polls pointing to a clear BJP majority in Assam, a return for the ruling DMK alliance in Tamil Nadu, and a comeback for the Congress-led opposition alliance in Kerala.
2021 West Bengal result
The comparison with 2021 gives the latest forecast its sharpest edge. Exit polls then predicted a close contest between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress, yet the Trinamool Congress still secured a decisive victory, which is why the April 30 projections will be read carefully by both parties.
For voters, the practical next step is to watch the final result against a backdrop of past polling error and a turnout level that left little room for assumptions. For party strategists, the question is whether the April 30 lead survives the count, or whether West Bengal repeats the gap between exit-poll numbers and the final result seen in 2021.
