TNI Bureau: Odisha has witnessed 18 Assembly bypolls between 2000 and 2024, and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has clearly dominated the electoral scene during this period. In 2015, Nuapada was added to the list with BJP’s resounding win.
According to Senior Journalist & Political Researcher Biswanath Praharaj Rajaguru, who compiled the data, BJD has won 15 of these bye-elections, while the Congress secured two seats, and the BJP managed two.
The bypoll trend shows how strongly the BJD has held its ground across different regions of the state for more than two decades. Starting from the Rairakhol bypoll in 2001, where Sanatan Bisi won for the BJD, the party continued its winning run in constituencies like Bhadrak, Nayagarh, Biramaharajpur, Sundargarh, and Umerkote.
Congress saw rare victories in 2006 and 2008 from Talsara (Dr. Prafulla Majhi) and Laxmipur (Purnachandra Majhi).
Meanwhile, the BJP’s only win in the 24 years of BJD rule came in 2022 from Dhamnagar, where Suryabanshi Suraj emerged victorious.
The BJD’s strong performance continued in the 2010s and 2020s with important wins in Athagarh (2012), Bijepur (2018), Patkura (2019), Balasore and Tirtol (2020), Pipili (2021), Padampur (2022), Brajrajnagar (2022), and Jharsuguda (2023).
The latest bypoll, held in 2025 in Nuapada, saw BJP candidate Jay Dholakia winning by a landslide margin.
The data shows that despite occasional setbacks, the BJD has remained the most dominant force in Odisha’s bypoll politics for nearly 25 years, with other parties managing only limited breakthroughs.
Here is a full summary of all bypolls held since 2000:
Complete Bypoll Timeline (2000–2025)
2001 – Rairakhol: Sanatan Bisi (BJD)
2002 – Bhadrak: Prafulla Samal (BJD)
2002 – Nayagarh: Mandakini Behera (BJD)
2003 – Biramaharajpur: Sanjeeb Kumar Sahoo (BJD)
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2005 – Sundargarh: Sushama Patel (BJD)
2006 – Talsara: Dr. Prafulla Majhi (Congress)
2008 – Laxmipur: Purnachandra Majhi (Congress)
2011 – Umerkote: Subash Gond (BJD)
2012 – Athagarh: Ranendra Pratap Swain (BJD)
2018 – Bijepur: Rita Sahu (BJD)
2019 – Patkura: Sabitri Agarwalla (BJD)
2020 – Balasore: Swarup Kumar Das (BJD)
2020 – Tirtol: Bijaya Shankar Das (BJD)
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2021 – Pipili: Rudra Pratap Maharathy (BJD)
2022 – Padampur: Barsha Singh Bariha (BJD)
2022 – Dhamnagar: Suryabanshi Suraj (BJP)
2022 – Brajrajnagar: Alaka Mohanty (BJD)
2023 – Jharsuguda: Dipali Das (BJD)
2025 – Nuapada: Jay Dholakia (BJP)
Overall Party Performance
BJD: 15 wins
Congress: 2 wins
BJP: 2 wins
