Star Campaigner

Star Campaigner

Context: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) appointed Sunita Kejriwal, wife of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, as a
\'star campaigner\' for its campaign in Gujarat.

About Star Campaigner: 

• Section 77 of the Representation of the People Act 1951 (RP Act) pertains to the regulations governing expenditure incurred by designated individuals known as \'leaders of a political party\'.
• These individuals, often referred to as \'star campaigners\', typically include top leaders of a political party along with other notable personalities or celebrities.
• The primary requirement for being designated as a star campaigner is that these individuals must be members of the political party that appoints them.
• According to the RP Act, a recognized political party (either national or state-level) can appoint a maximum of 40 star campaigners for election purposes, while a registered unrecognised political party can appoint up to 20 star campaigners.
• The names of these star campaigners must be communicated to both the Election Commission (EC) and the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of the respective states within seven days from the date of the election notification.
• In the case of elections conducted in multiple phases, a political party can submit separate lists of star campaigners for each phase to the Election Commission and Chief Electoral Officer.

Importance: