Congress presidential poll results: Counting of votes begins

New Delhi, October 19: The Congress is expected to elect a new president on Wednesday, with voting starting at 10 a.m

With former Union Ministers Mallikarjun Kharge and Shashi Tharoor in the fray, it will be for the first time in 24 years that Congress will get a party chief who does not belong to the Nehru-Gandhi family. The new party president will succeed Sonia Gandhi, who has been acting as interim president since Rahul Gandhi stepped down following the party's defeat in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The result is expected to be announced between 3 and 4 p.m. The ballot boxes from the state headquarters have arrived at the Congress office for counting. Mallikarjun Kharge is widely regarded as the contest's favourite. According to sources, five agents from each side will monitor the counting, with two agents from each side kept in reserve.

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Following the counting, the Chairman of the Central Election Authority will declare the results. More than 9,500 delegates voted in the presidential election. According to sources, seventy-eight tables would be set up for vote counting, with two people at each table. As per Congress sources, the elected president would assume office after Diwali in the presence of senior leaders at the Congress headquarters in a programme. It is uncertain whether the winner would receive the certificate on Wednesday or later. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who had previously been considered the favourite for the position, will be in Delhi tomorrow. Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra will continue.

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