The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has announced its final list of candidates for nine Assembly seats and four Lok Sabha seats for the upcoming general elections in 2024. Former minister Kimidi Kala Venkata Rao will be fighting Education Minister Botcha Satyanarayana of the YSR Congress in Cheepururpalli. Another former minister Ganta Srinivasa Rao will be contesting from Bheemili. The other MLA candidates include: Paderu (ST) – Killu Venkata Ramesh; Darsi – Dr. Gottipati Lakshmi; Rajampet – Sugavasi Subrahmanyam; Alur – Veerabhadra Goud; Guntakal – Gummanur Jayaram; Anantapur Urban – Daggubati Venkateswara Prasad; and Kadiri – Kandikunta Venkata Prasad.
The MP candidates announced by TDP are: Vizianagaram – Kalisetty Appala Naidu; Ongole – Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy; Anantapur – Ambika Lakshminarayana; Kadapa – Chadipiralla Bhupesh Reddy. TDP will be contesting 144 Assembly seats, Jana Sena from 21, and BJP from 10. In terms of MP seats, TDP will contest 17 seats, BJP 6, and Jana Sena 2.
There is a disagreement between BJP and TDP over certain seats, which is expected to be resolved soon. The BJP is reportedly seeking Rajahmundry Rural or Urban seats to accommodate its former State unit president Somu Veerraju. Ganta Srinivasa Rao initially wanted to contest from Cheepurupalli but was fielded from Bheemili. Gummanru Jayaram, a former minister in the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy Cabinet, quit YSRCP and joined TDP to contest from Guntakal Assembly seat. K Raghu Rama Krishnam Raju, who resigned from YSR Congress, expected TDP to field him from Narsapuram but BJP nominated its candidate for the seat.
Raghu Rama Krishnam Raju criticized TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu for not giving him a ticket and questioned his ability to fight for the Polavaram project and protect the State’s interests.
