THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Apparently sensing trouble amid rumours doing the rounds that it would be holding the reins, though tacitly, if the UDF is voted to power, the IUML — a key constituent of the front — has decided not to seek more seats than last time in the upcoming Kerala assembly elections. Instead, the League will push for seats with higher winning chances, top party sources told TNIE.
The party had contested 25 seats in the 2021 assembly elections and won 15. “We are now focusing on winnability. We are reviewing each seat and seeking to swap constituencies we have been losing repeatedly with other UDF partners, including the Congress, where they have better prospects.
Conversely, in seats where our partners have been losing consistently and we have a stronger chance, we would like to contest,” a senior leader said.
In the first round of deliberations that began on Tuesday, the Congress and the League agreed to to assess the winnability of seats they won and lost in the last election.
Talks focus on possibility of swapping 10 seats
Unlike in the past, when seat sharing was largely driven largely by leaders’ preferences, the process this time will be guided by findings from two surveys commissioned by the All India Congress Committee (AICC), the sources said.
One survey was conducted by Congress electoral strategist Sunil Kanugolu and the other by an independent agency. Together, the reports form the basis of the seat sharing discussions.
The reports assess each party’s electoral prospects in constituencies contested in the 2021 assembly election, analysing the reasons for the victories and defeats and the likelihood of retaining or wresting those seats this time.
“Based on these findings, each UDF ally will decide whether seats need to be swapped with other partners,” a UDF leader said.
The Congress-IUML talks focused on the possibility of swapping the 10 seats the League had lost in the 2021 elections.
While the Congress is keen to take over Guruvayur in Thrissur district by offering the League a suitable seat currently held by it, the IUML is learnt to have decided to retain the seat.
At the same time, the League is eyeing a swap of its Punalur seat with Eravipuram or Chadayamangalam in Kollam district, which were contested by the RSP and the Congress respectively last time. A final decision, however, will be taken after bilateral talks between the Congress and the RSP.