It is not as simple as in 2014.

"Thackeray was deep in love with Modi and the "Gujarat model" through 2013-14. However, the unalloyed bhakt has turned a ferocious antagonist, a hard hitting challenger," wrote S Koppikar. He admits that "he fell for Modi's public relations exercise" but "has since woken up to the dangers of the Modi model", thus telling people not to repeat the mistake of 2014, when Modi won on a landslide. Raj Thackeray is the nephew of the founder of Shiv Sena, Bal Thackeray, and founded his own party, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), after his cousin Udhav Thackeray, son of Bal, became chief of Shiv Sena. Raj Thackeray's speech is "peppered with video evidence, data, and clever use of Marathi idioms". "Thackeray's pattern is to call out Modi and BJP president Amit Shah for their 'fakery, lies, publicity blitzkrieg, and dictatorial tendencies'". Vinod Tawde of the BJP complained to the Election Commission but it can do nothing because Raj, or his party, is not contesting this election and he does not mention support for any candidate. "Perhaps no other sitting prime minister has scored so low on the popularity charts in Tamil Nadu," wrote AR Venkatachalapathy. "In the hugely popular pro-Jallikattu protests in January 2017, anti-Modi slogans were legion though he had little if anything to do with bullfighting." "Every slight to Tamil pride, every perceived threat to Tamil identity gets associated with Modi." At least a dozen Tamil films with anti-BJP messages have been released. While incumbents regularly get booted out in other states how do political parties hang on to power for decades in Bengal? "Short answer: a giant, octopus-squid whose tentacles reach each household in every village and mohalla," wrote A Barman. This is because of total control of public distribution by the state government. The previous Communist government "monopolised the distribution of fodder, fertiliser, whatever the village could need, through the party". The TMC of Mamata Banerjee has taken over the corrupt system. "What is happening in West Bengal is a systematic debasement and criminalisation of public life," wrote S Dasgupta. "Today, a mood of resignation is also accompanied by a growing sense of shame." If there is a hung parliament, Modi may have to contend with his minister for road transport, highways, shipping, water resources, river development, and Ganga rejuvenation, Nitin Gadkari. Gadkari has no national recognition and though, like Modi, he is a member of the RSS, the organisation is backing Modi. However, if Modi is unable to get a majority, other parties maybe more amenable to a BJP government with Gadkari as prime minister, rather than Modi. In 2014, Modi got 216 seats from 11 states but he may get only 50% from the Hindi belt this time, wrote MK Venu. The election may not end on 23 May with announcement of the results.