Archive · 6 Oct 2026
Akhilesh Yadav Drops Third Candidate Plan, Focuses on 2027
The Samajwadi Party decided not to enter a third candidate in the Rajya Sabha election.
Its leader, Akhilesh Yadav, said the party was now focusing on the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election.
The party has already put forward two candidates.
The BJP has put forward eight candidates.
The election is for 10 seats from Uttar Pradesh.
Without a third SP candidate, there will be no contest between the two parties, and their candidates are set to be elected without a vote.
The SP said it needed nine more votes to win a third seat, while the BJP needed two more for its eighth.
MLAs vote using an open-ballot system, and some were reluctant to openly vote against their parties before the Assembly election.
The Samajwadi Party decided not to field a third candidate in Uttar Pradesh’s Rajya Sabha election, ending a week of uncertainty.
Party president Akhilesh Yadav said the party was focusing on the 403-seat Uttar Pradesh Assembly, where elections are due in February 2027.
The SP has nominated Ram Gopal Yadav and a Reliance Industries executive; the articles give the executive’s name differently as Dhanraj Parimal Nathwani and Dhananjay Nathwani.
The BJP announced eight candidates, and with no SP third candidate, the two parties’ nominees are set to be elected unopposed.
The SP said its third candidate would need nine more first-preference votes, while the BJP needed two more for its eighth; open-ballot rules and election-season risks shaped the calculations.
- Who
- The Samajwadi Party, led by Akhilesh Yadav, and the Bharatiya Janata Party.
- What
- The SP withdrew its plan to field a third candidate for the Rajya Sabha election; its two candidates and the BJP’s eight candidates are set to be elected unopposed.
- When
- The decision was announced Tuesday, the final day for filing nominations. The Rajya Sabha election is scheduled for October 16.
- Where
- Uttar Pradesh; the SP nominees filed their nominations in Lucknow.
- Why
- The SP said the numbers needed to win a third seat were difficult to secure, and that it was focusing on the 2027 Assembly election.
Reasons to field a third SP candidate
Reasons to withdraw the third-candidate plan
Electoral opportunity
Reasons to field a third SP candidate
The SP had indicated it might field a third candidate, and some BJP MLAs were reportedly in touch with the party.
Reasons to withdraw the third-candidate plan
The SP said it was nine votes short of the number needed for its third candidate, while the BJP was only two votes short of securing its eighth.
Risk of cross-voting
Reasons to field a third SP candidate
A contest for 10 seats among 11 candidates could have created opportunities for cross-voting.
Reasons to withdraw the third-candidate plan
SP sources said open-ballot rules made it difficult to rely on defections, and some MLAs were unwilling to openly defy their parties before the 2027 Assembly election.
Political priority
Reasons to field a third SP candidate
The party had completed formalities to put forward a third candidate, according to a senior SP MLA cited in the article.
Reasons to withdraw the third-candidate plan
Akhilesh Yadav said the party’s focus had shifted from three Rajya Sabha seats to the 403-seat Assembly.
- Rajya Sabha seats
- The election is for 10 vacant seats from Uttar Pradesh.
- Election date
- October 16.
- SP nominees
- Ram Gopal Yadav and a Reliance Industries executive, named Dhanraj Parimal Nathwani in one article and Dhananjay Nathwani in the other.
- BJP nominees
- The BJP announced eight candidates.
- Assembly election
- Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections are due in February 2027.
- Voting threshold
- Each Rajya Sabha candidate requires 37 first-preference votes to win.
- Vote count described
- The SP said it needed nine additional first-preference votes for a third candidate; the BJP needed two additional votes for its eighth.
- Ballot process
- MLAs use an open-ballot system and show their marked ballots to an authorised party agent.
