Delhi Election 2025: From powerhouse to underdog – will Congress rewrite its fate in the national capital?

Delhi Election 2025: After ruling Delhi for 15 years, the Congress party was virtually reduced to a nonentity in the 2013 assembly polls when it won just eight seats due to the rise of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the national capital. The grand old party faced further setbacks, drawing a blank in the next two Delhi assembly elections – 2015 and 2020.

The AAP and the Congress are allies in the INDIA bloc nationally. The two parties contested the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 for seven seats in the national capital together. But have since then gone their separate ways and are rivals in the February 5 assembly elections.

As the poll date nears, the Delhi Congress leaders have unleashed an all-out attack against AAP chief and former CM Arvind Kejriwal for his ‘failure’ to govern Delhi in two terms. The AAP has, in turn, accused the grand old party of a ‘secret’ understanding with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)—the other major player in the three-way contest.

Here is a list of strengths and weaknesses of the Congress party in Delhi

Historical Legacy- Little to lose

The Congress party won no seats in the national capital in the last two assembly polls. Even a few seats would be an improvement for the party, which has very little to lose in the upcoming elections.

The Congress boasts its historical legacy, given its long-standing presence in Delhi. It governed the city for 15 years under the late Sheila Dikshit. The party believes many voters will still remember the period as a time of infrastructure development and stability.

The party can hope to cash in on the anti-incumbency against the ruling AAP. Disillusioned voters from either AAP or BJP may look to Congress as an alternative, especially where anti-incumbency sentiment exists more. The Congress remains a preferred choice for a section of the minority community, who may prefer it over AAP in the upcoming elections.

Leadership crisis, declining vote share

The Congress party doesn’t have a charismatic face leading the Delhi unit, unlike the Sheila Dikshit era. Worse, the party has weak organizational structure in the national capital. The grassroots cadre has significantly weakened over the years, with many leaders defecting to either BJP or AAP. For example, its former chief in Delhi Arvinder Singh Lovely is a BJP leader now.

The Congress has seen a drastic decline in vote share, particularly after the rise of AAP. The Arvind Kejriwal-led party’s vote share has gone up at the expense of the Congress.

The Congress tally in 2013 was 8 seats, down from the 43 it won in 2008. Its vote share also dipped from 40.31 per cent in 2008 to 24.55 per cent in 2013.

In 2015, the Congress suffered a 15 per cent decline in its vote share, which was reduced to 9.7 per cent. The vote share declined further in 2020 assembly polls when it was just 4.26 per cent.

Congress’s traditional vote base among minorities and lower-income groups has been significantly eroded by AAP’s welfare schemes, according to political analysts.

Lack of narrative

The Congress lacks a narrative this election. The AAP’s governance model and welfare schemes including free water and electricity have overshadowed Congress's earlier achievements.

The party has, nevertheless, promised ₹2500 a month cash scheme for women and a ₹25 lakh health insurance, if it comes back to power in Delhi in the upcoming elections.

The recent setbacks in Haryana and Maharashtra have added to Congress woes. The party that ruled Delhi for three terms from 1998 to 2013 is today struggling to project a distinct identity or agenda that differentiates it from the other two players – the AAP and the BJP – in the national capital.