MNF out, ZPM roars to a majority in Mizoram

The Zoram People's Movement (ZPM), Mizoram's youngest party, capped a stunning rise in the state's politics from its formation in 2017 to becoming the principal opposition in 2018-by sweeping the assembly elections on Monday, comfortably passing the halfway mark and winning 27 of the 40 assembly seats.

- Utpal Parashar

In the process, the six-year-old political outfit led by Lalduhoma, a former police officer who was once part of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's security detail and turned politician in 1984, broke the hegemony of both the ruling Mizo National Front (MNF) and the Congress that have taken turns to rule the state for the past four decades.

In results that were declared close to a month after counting day on November 7, the scale of the ZPM win reduced the Mizo National Front to a tally of 10 seats, down from the 26 that it won in 2018. The BJP, that had won one seat in 2018, won two seats, and the Congress, once a heavyweight in the state, fell from five seats in 2018 to one seat.

In terms of vote share, the ZPM received 37.86% in comparison to 23% in 2018. MNF, which secured 37.7% of total votes five years ago saw it slide to 35.10% this time. The BJP, which bagged 8% of total votes in 2018 managed to get 5% this time and the Congress that got 30% of total votes five years ago saw it fall to 20.82% this time.

Prominent candidates to lose in the ZPM wave included MNF president and chief minister Zoramthanga who lost his Aizawl East-I seat by over 2,000 votes. In contrast, Lalduhoma won his Serchhip seat by a margin of 3,000 votes.

The ZPM was founded in 2017, after six regional parties, Mizoram People's Conference, Zoram Nationalist Party, Zoram Exodus Movement, Zoram Decentralisation Front, Zoram Reformation Front and Mizoram People's party, came together. Two years later, the ZPM won eight seats, and became the largest opposition to the Zoramthanga-led MNF government.