According to the Election Commission, Patel secured 55,481 votes against Rabari’s 24,851 after all 20 rounds of counting.
Votes were counted from 8 am at Bhavan’s School in Vadodara’s Makarpura area under tight security arrangements.
The bypoll, held on July 30, was necessitated by the death of senior BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Yogesh Patel on June 2 after a prolonged illness. The election recorded a voter turnout of 37.5%.
The BJP had fielded former Vadodara Municipal Corporation councillor Satish Govindbhai Patel, while the Congress nominated its Gujarat vice-president and former state minister Bhikhabhai Rabari. The contest was a straight fight between the two candidates.
With the victory, the BJP’s tally in the 182-member Gujarat Assembly has risen to 162. The Congress has 12 legislators, while the Aam Aadmi Party has five MLAs. The remaining members include two Independents and one legislator from the Samajwadi Party.
