THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Caught by surprise by the unprecedentedly short window for elections, all three political fronts in Kerala have switched into electoral mode.
With just 24 days left for the assembly elections, the ruling LDF hit the campaign trail, while the UDF and the NDA are geared to make up for lost time.
The biggest challenge now before the UDF and NDA is to finish seat-sharing and candidate finalisation within the short span of time before starting the campaign, as a further delay could affect winnability.
With the deadline to file nominations just a week away, LDF has more or less finished seat-sharing, except for Antony Raju’s Democratic Kerala Congress. Both CPM and CPI announced candidates immediately after poll declaration.
Keen to cash in on the early bird advantage, a fired-up LDF even launched campaigning. Though LDF faces internal bickerings and open revolt, it has been able to present a more or less united face.
Riding on the development and welfare initiatives of the government, the LDF has chosen to rely mostly on sitting ministers and legislators. Including independents, 56 sitting MLAs figure in the CPM list, while there are seven sitting MLAs among CPI candidates.
BJP likely to declare ‘A-class’ picks in a day
The UDF is set to finalise seat-sharing. The Congress’ bilateral talks with major allies like the IUML, Kerala Congress and CMP are in progress. However, adding to its worries are a couple of internal bickerings on over seat denial and leadership crisis over two-three chief ministerial candidates.
Sources said Congress will declare its first list of candidates, mostly sitting MLAs, in a day or two.The League, too, has more or less confirmed its candidates, though the UDF is yet to finalise some of its seats. Sorting out issues with Kerala Congress factions remains a task unresolved.
The BJP-led NDA which hopes to make a mark this time around, is facing issues over seat sharing and candidate selection, too. However, compared to the UDF, the saffron front is more or less in the final stages of poll preparedness. It’s learnt the BJP is set to announce candidates of its A-Class constituencies in a day. In key seats, it has already launched its campaign, targeting its prime opponents.
For both the UDF and BJP, early elections mean less campaign time. While the UDF hopes to cash in on anti-incumbency and corruption charges against the Left, BJP hopes to strike big through the Sabarimala issue, anti-Left campaign, among others.
“It is advantage Left as of now,” said political commentator J Prabhash. “With its early preparation and well-oiled machinery, the LDF is slightly ahead of the other two fronts, though we cannot say it’ll convert to victory. The UDF is handicapped due to lack of machinery and late arrival. However, most of the voters may have already made up their minds. Hence, these factors need not affect winnability of any front.”
Going by past experiences, LDF’s early candidate selection might not get converted into poll victory, observed political analyst G Gopakumar. “If the UDF is able to consolidate itself, the short time span will not be an issue. In a way, it will help UDF. The Congress, which is facing fund shortage and bickering, will now focus on the campaign trail,” he said.
Meanwhile, an early election would also mean candidates won’t have to bear the brunt of a scorching summer.