Elections to the Assembly constituencies in Kerala and Assam, as well as the Union Territory of Puducherry, will begin at 7 am today, in what marks a summer of elections.
Polling for the 140 Assembly constituencies in Kerala will see a three-cornered contest between the CPI(M)-led LDF, the Congress-led UDF and the BJP-led NDA.
Assam will see a two-cornered fight for its 126-member Assembly between the BJP-led NDA and an opposition alliance spearheaded by the Congress.
In Puducherry, the contest its 30 Assembly constituencies involves the ruling NDA, which includes NR Congress and BJP and the Congress-DMK alliance. Actor Vijay's TVK is seeking to make it triangular.
Voting will begin at 7 am and conclude at 5 pm.
Counting of votes will take place on May 4, along with Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, which go to the polls later this month.
In Puducherry, the contest involves the ruling NDA, comprising the NR Congress and the BJP, and the Congress-DMK alliance, with actor Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) aiming to turn the election into a three-cornered fight.
A total of 294 candidates are in the fray.
Within the NDA, the NR Congress is contesting 16 constituencies and the BJP 10, while allies AIADMK and LJK are contesting two seats each.
In the opposition INDIA bloc, the Congress is contesting 16 seats, the DMK 13 and the VCK one. However, Congress candidates are also contesting in six seats allotted to the DMK, defying the party’s directive to withdraw.
The TVK has fielded candidates in 28 of the 30 constituencies and is backing the Neyyam Makkal Kazhagam in the remaining two.
Around 10.14 lakh voters are eligible to cast their ballots to elect the 30-member Assembly, including 5.39 lakh women, 4.74 lakh men and 157 third gender voters.
The electorate includes 24,156 first-time voters aged 18-19 and 6,034 voters aged 85 and above.
Elections to the 126-member Assam Assembly will begin at 7 am, with most constituencies witnessing a direct contest between the BJP-led NDA and an opposition alliance led by the Congress.
The BJP is seeking a third consecutive term in power, while the Congress is aiming to regain the state after being ousted in 2016.
A total of 722 candidates are in the fray, including Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, state Congress president Gaurav Gogoi, Leader of Opposition Debabrata Saikia, AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal, Raijor Dal leader Akhil Gogoi and AJP president Lurinjyoti Gogoi.
Polling will be held from 7 am to 5 pm across 31,490 polling stations in 35 districts.
Around 2.50 crore voters, including 1.25 crore women and 318 from the third gender, are eligible to vote.
The Congress has fielded the highest number of candidates at 99, followed by the BJP with 90. Among allies, the AIUDF is contesting 30 seats, while NDA partners AGP and BPF are contesting 26 and 11 seats, respectively.
In the opposition bloc, Raijor Dal is contesting 13 seats, AJP 10, CPI(M) three and APHLC two, while other parties include AAP (18), UPPL (18), TMC (22) and JMM (16), along with 258 Independents.
Key contests include Jalukbari, where Sarma is seeking a sixth consecutive term, and Jorhat, where Gaurav Gogoi is making his Assembly debut.
Debabrata Saikia is seeking to retain Nazira, while Akhil Gogoi is in a three-cornered contest in Sibsagar.
Badruddin Ajmal is contesting from Binnakandi, while Lurinjyoti Gogoi is in the fray from Khowang.
The electorate includes 6.42 lakh first-time voters, 2.50 lakh voters aged 80 and above, including 2,466 centenarians, and 2.05 lakh persons with disabilities.
Kerala, which is witnessing a three-cornered contest between the incumbent CPI(M)-led LDF, the Congress-led UDF and the BJP-led NDA, will decide the fate of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s government, which is seeking a hattrick of wins after breaking the state’s long-standing anti-incumbency trend in 2021.
For the LDF, the stakes are high. A string of setbacks, from the 2024 Lok Sabha polls to by-elections and losses in the December local body polls, has weakened its position, amid signs of governance fatigue and local-level grievances. Among the key names in fray for the LDF , CM Vijayan is contesting from Dharmadam, along with K.K. Shailaja (Peravoor), Veena George (Aranmula) and V. Sivankutty (Nemom).
The UDF is banking on a seat-by-seat swing driven by dissatisfaction and consolidation of its support base, and sees momentum shifting in its favour towards the end of the campaign. For the UDF, V.D. Satheesan is contesting from Paravur, with Ramesh Chennithala (Haripad), Chandy Oommen (Puthuppally) and Sunny Joseph (Peravoor) among key candidates.
The BJP, meanwhile, is aiming to expand its footprint. For the party, the focus is less on forming a government and more on increasing its relevance in the state.
State president Rajeev Chandrasekhar has expressed confidence of opening the party’s account again after its 2016 win in Nemom, citing its performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and its control of the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation. For the BJP, Rajeev is contesting from Nemom and V. Muraleedharan from Kazhakootam.
According to the Election Commission, 2.71 crore voters — including 1.32 crore men, 1.39 crore women and 273 transgender persons, as well as over 2.42 lakh overseas voters — are eligible to vote in the election involving 883 candidates.
Candidates have also stepped up outreach to younger voters through influencers and podcasts, reflecting changing campaign strategies in the state.