In its bid to expand beyond Uttar Pradesh and achieve national party status, the Samajwadi Party (SP) has fielded 20 candidates for the Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir—15 in Kashmir and five in Jammu. However, the party faces a significant challenge due to its inability to secure its traditional poll symbol, the cycle.

Without the familiar symbol, the SP is relying on recognition of party chief Akhilesh Yadav and the distinctive “laal topi” (red cap) to boost its visibility. SP spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary emphasized that contesting these elections is part of the party’s strategy to expand its organizational footprint.

Following the rejection of five candidates’ nominations by the Election Commission, no SP candidates are participating in the first phase of the polls. In the second phase, SP candidates are contesting under various symbols from the EC’s free symbol list, while in the third phase, they will be using the “laptop” symbol.

The absence of the traditional cycle symbol is proving problematic for the candidates. Manzoor Ahmed, SP’s candidate from Baramulla, noted that the confusion is affecting their campaign. “All our party materials feature the cycle, but my symbol is ‘laptop’. To address this, we’ve printed stickers with the ‘laptop’ symbol and are going door-to-door to clear up any confusion,” he said.

Similarly, Mehrajuddin Ahmad, the SP candidate from Eidgah contesting on the “computer” symbol, is leveraging images of Akhilesh and party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav to reinforce the party’s identity. “Akhilesh is well-regarded here, but the party is traditionally recognized by its cycle symbol. I am using pictures of Akhilesh and Mulayam Singh Yadav to assure voters that voting for the ‘computer’ symbol supports the SP,” Ahmad explained.

The SP previously contested the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections in 2014 and 2008, but did not secure any seats.