The results in West Bengal will be known in a few hours, and two particular areas show what the 2026 election is all about. In Kolkata Port, Firhad Hakim (a very important person in the TMC) is hoping for a fourth consecutive win. In Ranaghat Dakshin, Sougata Kumar Burman from the TMC is competing with Ashim Kumar Biswas from the BJP in an election where a large number of people voted (this was Phase 2 of the election).
Why these two seats matter
The after-voting polls suggest it will be extremely close statewide, and several groups doing polls think the BJP is slightly ahead. They estimate the BJP will get between 142 and 175 seats, and the TMC between 99 and 140 seats. This shows a significant change could happen, but also that, as has often been the case in West Bengal, it’s hard to be certain about the outcome.
These two elections represent opposite recent patterns. The TMC has completely controlled Kolkata Port since 2011. Ranaghat Dakshin, which the BJP won in t2021, will show if the BJP can keep the seat, while the TMC tries to win it back.
The number of people voting shows how important the election is. Across both phases of voting in West Bengal, 92.47% of eligible voters voted, and Phase 2 alone had 91.03% turnout. Both Kolkata Port and Ranaghat Dakshin voted on April 29th, and the votes will be counted on May 4th.
Kolkata Port: Hakim’s turf faces a crowded field
Kolkata Port is a normal Assembly seat within the larger Kolkata Dakshin area for the national Parliament and has voted for the TMC without fail since 2011. Firhad Hakim, who has been the mayor of Kolkata since 2018, is again the TMC candidate there in 2026.
His opponents come from different opposition parties: Faiyaz Khan is running for the CPI, Aquib Gulzar for the Congress, and the BJP hasn’t yet said who their candidate will be, so we don’t yet know who Hakim will be up against as counting gets closer.
Hakim has become more and more powerful with each election. He won for the first time in 2011, beating Moinuddin Shams of the All India Forward Bloc by more than 25,000 votes. In 2016 he won the seat again, this time against Rakesh Singh of the Congress, and increased his margin of victory, making the TMC’s control even stronger.
By 2021, his win was very clear. He defeated Awadh Kishore Gupta of the BJP by 68,554 votes, showing how firmly TMC supporters had voted for him in that area. However, the election as a whole has become more competitive across the state.
What the 2021 verdict signalled
In 2021, Hakim got 105,543 votes (69.23% of the total). Awadh Kishore Gupta of the BJP received 36,989 votes (24.26%). Md Mukhtar of the Congress got 3.67%, and 1,360 people chose NOTA (None of the Above), representing 0.89% of the votes.
The 2026 election was held in two stages for all 294 seats – 152 on April 23rd in the first stage and 142 on April 29th in the second. Kolkata Port voted in the second stage, and the results for that area are due on May t4th.
Ranaghat Dakshin: BJP defence meets TMC challenge
Ranaghat is a busy city and trading centre about 70 kilometers from Kolkata. It is well-connected by train, is known for its hand-made cloth, flower markets, and sweets. 93.2% of the people there can read and write, there are 986 women for every 1000 men, and 13% of the population are from Scheduled Castes.
This year, the BJP are running Ashim Kumar Biswas. Sougata Kumar Burman is the TMC candidate, and Arindam Biswas is running for the CPI M. The outcome in Ranaghat will tell us whether the BJP can keep a seat they won in 2021 or if the TMC can manage to win it back.
The last election showed the BJP’s strength in that area. In 2021, Ranaghat Dakshin had 285,180 registered voters and 241,687 of them actually voted. Mukut Mani Adhikari of the BJP won with 119,260 votes, beating Barnali Dey Roy of the TMC who got 102,745 votes. He won by 16,515 votes.
People were very actively involved in voting. The people of Ranaghat voted in Phase 2 on April 29th. 91.03% of the voters in Phase 2 turned out, showing a lot of passion in the local election, which matches the enthusiasm across the state.
Turnout and the wider backdrop
Because of the size of the election and the need for security, the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections were held in two phases – April 23rd and April 29th. In total, 92.47% of people in West Bengal voted in both phases, which is one of the highest rates the state has ever had.
Polls done after people voted have suggested the government might change, but these polls haven’t always been accurate in West Bengal because of the complicated local political situation. Mamata Banerjee has said that the polls were done at the request of the BJP and don’t reflect what is happening on the ground.
Key dates, stakes and what comes next
The result in Kolkata Port will show if Hakim’s strong support for over ten years will get him a fourth win. Ranaghat Dakshin will show if the BJP can maintain its position against a strong effort from the TMC in a very important area.
The Election Commission has said the votes will be counted on May 4th. The final numbers will be worked out seat by seat, and both parties will be looking at how people in cities voted, how strong their organization is, and how many politicians have changed sides (and therefore potentially influenced how people voted) in the many different areas.
A recent, thorough review of who is registered to vote has added to the intensity of the campaigning. Now, the final steps are about making sure the counting is secure, getting the EVM machines (the voting computers) to the right place, and quickly reporting the results, before the political outcome is known.
Here are the immediate markers to track on results day:
– Counting for both seats begins on May 4
– Whether Hakim converts dominance into a fourth term
– BJP’s pick in Kolkata Port remains to be announced
– Ranaghat Dakshin indicates BJP hold or TMC recovery
– Exit polls project BJP 142-175, TMC 99-140
– Mamata Banerjee rejects the projections as politically driven
The results of both of these seats will be a key part of the story of the election in the whole state. If the predictions from the polls are right, leaders of the BJP will say this is a historic change. If they aren’t, the TMC will say that West Bengal is resisting the trends happening nationally. Either way, Kolkata Port and Ranaghat Dakshin are good seats to watch to see what will happen.
