Early trends in Kerala indicate that the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) is leading in 14 of the 20 seats. While the Left Democratic Front has lead in over six seats, the BJP has none.
The prominent candidates with clear leads in the state include Congress leader and Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi and Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor. While Rahul has a steady lead over CPI's Annie Raja, Tharoor is racing ahead of Union Minister and BJP candidate Rajeev Chandrasekhar.
In the Thrissur constituency which the BJP has a lot of hopes for, party candidate and actor Suresh Gopi is currently in third position, with LDF candidate V S Sunil Kumar taking the lead.
In Pathanamthitta where BJP has fielded Anil Antony, the party is trailing in the third position, far behind the UDF candidate Anto Antony.
As per an exit poll conducted by ManoramaNews-VMR, the UDF is slated to garner 16 to 18 seats while LDF might win two to four seats. UDF victory is predicted in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Ernakulam, Chalakkudy, Thrissur, Ponnani, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad and Kasaragod,
Rahul Gandhi is expected to lose vote share by nearly 14 per cent in the Congress bastion of Wayanad.
The survey also predicts that the LDF vote share will soar. One major factor to consider is the candidature of senior leaders like CPI's Annie Raja and BJP state chief K.Surendran. It's not clear if the voters were influenced by the prospect of Rahul vacating Wayanad if he wins Raebareli, the sole seat won by the Congress in Uttar Pradesh in the previous elections.
The survey also says BJP will draw a blank this time too though it could come second in Thiruvananthapuram and Pathanamthitta.
Interestingly, the battle in Kerala also witnesses INDIA allies fighting against each other.