A ground-level survey of the Rae Bareli parliamentary constituency was conducted by India News to analyse the performance of Sonia Gandhi, the Member of Parliament from Rae Bareli, and to gather voters’ feedback about her.
Sonia Gandhi, a prominent Indian politician, holds the distinction of being the longest-serving president of the Indian National Congress, a key political party in India with a substantial impact on the nation’s post-independence history. Rae Bareli, a constituency with a strong Congress legacy, has consistently been a stronghold for the Nehru-Gandhi family, with Sonia Gandhi currently representing it as the Member of Parliament.
Historically, Rae Bareli reflected the enduring influence of the Nehru-Gandhi family, witnessing only three instances of non-Congress members securing victory in 1977, 1996, and 1998. Sonia Gandhi took leadership of the Indian National Congress in 1998, emerging as a powerful figure in Indian politics. Her nearly two-decade-long tenure, until 2017, significantly impacted the political landscape.
Despite being a Congress stronghold, recent years have witnessed a shift in dynamics in Rae Bareli. Sonia Gandhi, however, has consistently triumphed in the Lok Sabha elections since 2004. The constituency has six legislative assembly seats, a significant voter base of around 2 million people, with Scheduled Caste and Muslim voters playing pivotal roles in shaping electoral outcomes.
Despite political dominance, development in Rae Bareli lags behind. The local populace grapples with challenges like poor road conditions, health issues due to contaminated water, and sewage problems. Unemployment and limited educational opportunities contribute to migration from the region.
Examining Rae Bareli’s electoral history reveals a nuanced political landscape, transitioning from Congress dominance to occasional victories by non-Congress parties. The upcoming 2024 elections are crucial as Sonia Gandhi’s stronghold faces challenges amid changing political dynamics and developmental concerns, prompting a closer scrutiny of her leadership and performance by the discerning electorate.
With the upcoming 2024 general elections, the people of Rae Bareli generally express trust in the Congress candidate. However, looking at the results of the previous two elections in 2014 and 2019, the Congress party has experienced a significant decline in vote share. The BJP has been gaining substantial votes, making the 2024 elections crucial for Rae Bareli.
Before the elections, the people of Rae Bareli are likely to scrutinize Sonia Gandhi’s performance as their Member of Parliament. The outcome of the 2024 elections will be pivotal for Rae Bareli, as the BJP is making significant inroads. Therefore, the electorate will closely evaluate Sonia Gandhi’s track record and performance.
Let’s now examine the performance of the Member of Parliament (MP) in the Parliament.
In Parliament, Sonia Gandhi holds the first position based on the number of questions, MP fund utilization, and special contributions. She receives a score of 1, with a full 0.50 score, indicating 50%, which is an average performance.
During parliamentary performance elections, the ground-level sentiments of the public hold significant importance. A survey conducted by India News asked several questions, and the people of Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituency expressed their views openly. After engaging with thousands of individuals, let’s see what the public’s decision reveals.
As mentioned earlier, India News allocated 70% attention to the assessment, translating to 7 out of 10 marks. The calculation of our questions is also based on this 7-point scale. Now, let’s delve into the outcomes.
The people of Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituency have candidly responded to our six questions, providing straightforward answers without hesitation. The majority of respondents express satisfaction with their Member of Parliament’s (MP) performance, acknowledging the MP’s consistent focus on development in the region. Additionally, the public is actively suggesting that the MP should be even more engaged in local activities, reflecting high expectations from their representative.
Regarding voting preferences for the 2024 general elections, the Rae Bareli electorate favours the Congress party over the NDA, with a preference for Sonia Gandhi as their MP. The ground-level sentiment indicates that the public perceives Sonia Gandhi’s work positively, giving her a rating of 7 out of 10, which is considered excellent. In terms of development and the fulfilment of promises, Rae Bareli’s electorate seems content with Sonia Gandhi’s efforts.
Considering the responses and calculations based on ground-level feedback, Sonia Gandhi receives approximately 68% support from the people of Rae Bareli. This endorsement signifies that, according to the ground reality, the public is content with Sonia Gandhi’s work as their representative in the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituency.
In an India News survey, Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituents were questioned about their MP Sonia Gandhi’s ground-level performance. The ground performance assessment, weighted at 10%, resulted in a score of 1 for Sonia Gandhi, equivalent to a 0.40 rating. This suggests that around 40% of respondents expressed dissatisfaction or perceived shortcomings in Sonia Gandhi’s local engagement and impact in Rae Bareli. The survey sheds light on the public sentiment regarding their representative’s effectiveness on the ground.
While the ground-level performance of the Member of Parliament (MP) in Rae Bareli was assessed through India News survey, the era of social media is equally influential. Social media platforms were utilized to ask the same questions posed in the survey. The results from the social media survey, given a 10% weightage and scored on a 1-10 scale, indicate a lower average rating of 0.41 for the MP. Approximately 41% of respondents on social media express less favourable opinions, suggesting a mixed sentiment regarding the Rae Bareli MP’s performance in the digital space.
The evaluation of Member of Parliament (MP) Sonia Gandhi’s performance in various aspects, such as parliamentary activities, ground-level engagement, and social media presence, provides a comprehensive perspective. Sonia Gandhi received 0.50 in parliamentary performance, 0.40 in ground performance, and 0.41 in social media survey, each scored out of 1. In our ground survey, she was rated 4.76 out of 10, showcasing positive sentiment. When combined, Sonia Gandhi receives an impressive 6.07 out of 10. With over 60% points in her report card, Rae Bareli constituents overwhelmingly pass Sonia Gandhi in their assessment, marking a significant improvement from the previous rating of 5.1 six months ago.
After engaging with thousands of people on the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat, this intriguing figure has been shared by India News with its viewers. Conversations were held with people from various demographics, including women, men, farmers, labourers, students, businesspeople, and individuals from every religion and caste. Following these discussions, the interesting statistic has come to light. In this figure, Sonia Gandhi, the Member of Parliament from Rae Bareli, has been marked as “pass.”