Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar has won the Panaji by-poll by 4803 votes. Parrikar defeated his Congress rival in a close contest. The total number of votes received by Manohar Parrikar counted to 9862 votes, whereas the opposition candidate from Congress, Girish Chodankar got 5059 votes. Anand Shirodkar of Goa Suraksha Manch was another candidate to watch out for in the election which was held on 23rd August, however, Anand did not give a tough fight to the other 2 candidates in the constituency.
Manohar Parrikar was elected as Goa chief minister after the assembly elections held earlier this year. Till now, he did not hold an assembly seat, however, according to the Constitution, it is mandatory for any chief minister to hold an assembly seat within 6 months of assuming the office. Prior to being appointed Goa chief minister, Manohar Parrikar was in the central government, serving as union defence minister.
Panaji has been a safe seat for Manohar Parrikar. Before being promoted to the union rank, he was an MLA from Panaji from 1994 to 2014. He had held the post of Goa chief minister before too and with him now being a part of the assembly, looks set for another full term in the chief minister office.
Before the elections, Manohar Parrikar had mentioned that the city will be developed under the smart-city mission to provide world-class infrastructure and amenities to the residents. In his manifesto, Parrikar had added that the problems of water, electricity, garbage and traffic management will be addressed within a year.