CHENNAI: AIADMK should embark on a ‘sweeping organisational overhaul’ centered on generational change if it wants to stage a political comeback — this was the general sentiment of party functionaries across the state.
As AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami’s discussions, which began on June 13, with functionaries from 85 party districts on the party’s defeat in the Assembly elections, concluded on Saturday, TNIE spoke to office-bearers across the state to know their views on the course corrections needed to ensure victory in the next Assembly elections.
Appointment of younger leaders and women as deputy general secretaries, the creation of a better social media and television presence to counter political rivals, wider representation for underrepresented communities, direct interaction between Palaniswami and grassroots-level functionaries like panchayat union-level secretaries and a shift from money-driven candidate selection to recognising long-serving party workers — these are some of the suggestions put forth by functionaries.
A functionary active on social media told TNIE that while DMK and TVK had built strong digital propaganda machinery, AIADMK’s online presence remained weak despite being among the first parties to establish an information technology wing. Although party supporters could articulate AIADMK’s views through social media posts, the organisation lacked a professional system to produce videos, create catchy slogans and widely disseminate them.
“The leadership should invest substantially in digital outreach. Elections cannot be fought using strategies from the 70s or 80s. Social media is now the principal battleground. The party must identify and encourage capable people irrespective of their background,” he said.
A second-generation AIADMK worker, whose father joined the party in 1972, said the organisation should launch at least two television channels and a newspaper focusing on public issues rather than personality-centric coverage.
He also argued that the party needed to project younger leaders, pointing out that most important organisational posts were being held by office-bearers over 50 years of age.
According to him, union, town and town panchayat secretaries should ideally be in their 40s, and the number of party districts should be increased from 85 to 117, with younger leaders heading most of them. Every district should have its own YouTube channel, catering to local issues.
He also suggested appointing four young deputy general secretaries, including two women with organisational experience, and giving them greater visibility alongside Palaniswami to improve public perception, while bringing younger voices into decision-making.
A long-time functionary said AIADMK was still relying on Baby Boomer-era campaign methods while attempting to attract Gen Z voters. The party should adopt separate outreach strategies for different age groups while inducting more young office-bearers. He suggested entrusting around 100 youngsters with running district-level YouTube channels and encouraging them to participate in television debates.He also favoured appointing youngsters from minority and numerically smaller communities as deputy general secretaries.
Another functionary from southern Tamil Nadu said that despite AIADMK claiming 2.5 crore members, its 2026 Assembly election performance showed it had failed to secure the support of a large section of its own cadre.
Another party worker said the general secretary should hold exclusive meetings with grassroots-level functionaries, without district secretaries, to obtain an unfiltered assessment of political realities. Instead of heavily relying on election strategists, the party should depend more on its cadre to understand public sentiment.
He also called for wider representation to counter the perception that the AIADMK predominantly fields candidates from only certain communities in the Kongu region and parts of southern Tamil Nadu.
They said the morale in the party had declined because many workers no longer believed their years of service would be recognised. During the tenures of MGR and J Jayalalithaa, cadre had confidence that commitment would eventually be rewarded. To restore that confidence, they said, the party should place greater emphasis on organisational contribution rather than financial strength while selecting candidates for elections.
EPS, 4 ex-AIADMK MLAs to appear before Speaker
Chennai: Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker J C D Prabhakar has asked four former AIADMK MLAs – who had resigned their membership in the Assembly and joined the ruling TVK – and AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami to appear before him on July 30 to obtain further explanations from them. Earlier, Palaniswami had filed a representation with the Speaker, seeking the disqualification of 25 AIADMK MLAs, who had supported the TVK government during the Assembly floor test on May 13 against the instructions of the party whip. While 21 legislators have apologised to Palaniswami for supporting the TVK government, four of them – Maragatham Kumaravel (Madurantakam-SC), P Sathyabama (Dharapuram-SC), KS Jayakumar (Perundurai) and Esakki Subaya (Ambasamudram) – resigned and joined the TVK. Palaniswami insisted on the disqualification of the four former MLAs, who have already met the Speaker and clarified their stand on a few occasions. In this regard, the Speaker has asked EPS and the four to appear before him on July 30. ENS
Key suggestions
· Appoint four middle-aged leaders, including two women, as deputy general secretaries
· Launch one or two AIADMK television channels and a newspaper focusing on people's issues rather than personality-driven content.
· Establish a YouTube channel for every district unit with dedicated teams to counter rival parties' narratives.
· Set up professional "war rooms" for digital and social media campaigns.
· Increase the number of party districts from 85 to 117 and entrust many of them to leaders in their forties.
· Project at least 20 young leaders as the public faces of the AIADMK.
· Ensure district, union, town and town panchayat-level positions are increasingly held by younger office-bearers.
· Hold separate interactions with grassroots functionaries without district secretaries being present.
· Give greater importance to grassroots feedback instead of relying predominantly on election strategists.
· Select election candidates based on their contribution to the party rather than their financial strength.
· Launch targeted outreach strategies for every generation, particularly Gen Z and future Gen Alpha voters.