The Election Commission on Sunday declared that the Kerala Assembly Elections will be held on April 9. The elections will be held in a single phase, and the results will be out on May 4, along with those of other poll-bound states, including West Bengal and Assam.
Elections will be held for 140 seats, the campaigning for which has already started in the state, which will see a three-pronged battle. The ruling Left Democratic Front, led by CPI(M), will take on the United Democratic Front led by Congress. A stronger BJP is also in the fray, hoping to upset the traditional UDF-LDF cycle of government in Kerala.
In the outgoing Assembly, the ruling CPI (M) has 61 members, while the Congress' strength stands at 22.
Will UDF return to power?
The UDF has its hopes high on returning to power, riding on the decade old anti-incumbency against the LDF government. The Front put up a good show at the last Parliament elections, winning 18 of the 20 seats in Kerala. The recent bypolls also saw good performance from the UDF, which secured victories in four out of five Assembly by-elections since 2021. It tasted defeat only at Chelakkara in 2024, a Left bastion. The front is also hoping its allies to put up a good performance, thanks to the consensus among allies. However, the front still doesn’t have a chief minister face to project, unlike the LDF, which projects Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
Pinarayi 3.0?
The LDF is looking to overcome the anti-incumbency and secure a record third straight win. The front is still pinning its hopes on the aura of the Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan, to bounce back to power. Their most formidable asset, his image as a crisis manager, is expected to keep the party afloat amid the wave of anti-incumbency and a stronger opposition and an ambitious BJP. The LDF's strategy also relies heavily on its partners-- CPI, Kerala Congress (M), RJD, NCP, Janata Dal, Congress (S) and Kerala Congress (B).
Ambitious BJP
The third front, the BJP, is facing the elections after a commendable performance in the local body elections, which saw the party wrest the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation for the first time. The saffron party has already taken an early lead with its poll campaign, and is banking on the image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the broad acceptance he enjoys among various sections of people to help them in the polls.