Kerala polls: LDF on verge of losing last state, says Shashi Tharoor

Shashi Tharoor predicts a 'seismic shift' with a UDF win in Kerala, based on exit polls. He says this would leave the LDF without power in any Indian state for the first time, marking the loss of its last administrative foothold.

Ahead of the 2026 Assembly election results, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has predicted a seismic shift in the Indian political landscape, suggesting the Left Democratic Front (LDF) is on the verge of losing its final administrative foothold in the country.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Tharoor highlighted that if exit poll projections hold, it would mark the first time in recent history that the Left is not in power in any Indian state. "I would agree that the most important story that will come out of this from tomorrow is that it will be the first time that the LDF is not in power anywhere in the country," he said.

Historically, the Left maintained a presence in at least one of its three traditional bastions, West Bengal, Tripura, or Kerala. However, after losing Bengal in 2011 and Tripura in 2018, Kerala remains the sole state under LDF rule. "The most important story tomorrow will be that it is the first time the LDF is not in power anywhere in the country," Tharoor remarked. "When they lost Kerala and Bengal in 2011, they still had Tripura. This time, they will have nowhere. That is a major development for our country," he said.

Traditionally, Kerala has alternated between the LDF and UDF every five years. The LDF actually broke this 40-year-old "yo-yo" tradition by winning a historic second consecutive term in 2021. If the "unanimous" win for the UDF that Tharoor mentioned comes to pass, the LDF would move to the opposition benches.

For the Left, this isn't just about losing a state; it's about losing their only administrative platform to showcase their alternative governance model.

"Exit polls in our country have lots of problems. I don't want to particularly rely on them, but they have all agreed with each other, which is amazing. Unanimous conclusion. All the experts, the journalists, the observers, and political analysts from various parties whom I have spoken to since the 4th of April, they're all unanimous that this is going to be a UDF win. So it would be an astonishing result if it were not that kind of win. So I think we're here to see what comes in tomorrow morning, but I'm expecting by mid-morning it will be a very clear and convincing narrative in our favour", Congress MP said.

Earlier, Keralam Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan changed his social media bio on Sunday, one day ahead of the counting of votes for the recently held Assembly elections in the State. The changed bio of Vijayan now reads "Polit Bureau Member, Communist Party of India (Marxist)".

Exit Poll Projections

Exit poll projections have predicted that the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) is poised to win Keralam assembly polls.

Axis My India projected a comfortable majority for UDF and said it will win 78 to 90 seats in the 140-member assembly. It said the Left Democratic Front would win 49 to 62 seats and the BJP-led NDA zero to three seats.

According to People's Pulse, the ruling LDF is poised to win 55 to 60 seats, UDF 75 to 85 seats and NDA 0-3 seats.

JVC projected that UDF would win with 72 to 84 seats, LDF 52-60 seats and BJP-led NDA three to eight seats.

Election Background and 2021 Results

Keralam went to the polls in a single phase on April 9, and the voter turnout was 78.27 per cent.The LDF had won the 2021 polls and broken the trend of the state having a change of government every five years.

The last polls were a setback for UDF and exit poll predictions will be music to the ears of the leaders of the Congress-led alliance.

LDF had won 99 out of 140 seats in the 2021 polls with CPI-M winning 62. Pinarayi Vijayan became Chief Minister for another term.

The results of Keralam elections will be out on May 4, along with the outcome of elections in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)