Kerala Election Results 2024 highlights: Congress wins 14 seats out of 20, Rahul, Tharoor emerge victorious

The Election Commission of India declared the results for all 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala, with the Indian National Congress winning 14 seats despite losing one compared to previous elections. The INDIA bloc secured 19 seats, leaving the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with one seat, marking a gain for the party.

The Indian Union Muslim League maintained its two seats, while the Communist Party of India (Marxist) won one seat. BJP candidate Rajeev Chandrasekhar acknowledged his loss to Congress's Shashi Tharoor in Thiruvananthapuram but highlighted the growing support for the BJP in Kerala. Tharoor secured his fourth consecutive victory in the constituency.

Forty out of forty. That’s what Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin told his party cadres last month, urging them to ensure that DMK and its allies win all the 39 Lok Sabha seats in the state and the one in neighbouring Puducherry. And INDIA bloc ticked all the 40 boxes on Tuesday.The big win in the threecornered fight gives credence to the alliance’s ideological bonding strengthened by the common opposition to BJP. It also leaves AIADMK and BJP, former electoral partners, in doldrums to rethink their strategies before the 2026 assembly election.While AIADMK’s unimpressive line-up failed to impress the electorate, BJP couldn’t do any better with its high-profile candidates like state president K Annamalai (Coimbatore), Union minister L Murugan (Niligirs) and former Telangana governor Tamilisai Soundararajan (Chennai South). Ousted AIADMK leader O Panneerselvam, who contested in Ramanathapuram as an NDA-backed independent, lagged behind DMK ally IUML’s K Navaskani by a margin of more than 1.6 lakh (yet to be announced).The counting gave some anxious moments to many candidates. After leading initially, BJP’s Tirunelveli candidate and MLA Nainar Nagendran fell by the wayside and Congress candidate Robert Bruce won by more than 1.6 lakh votes. AIADMK ally and DMDK Virudhunagar candidate Vijay Prabhakar, maintained a lead over his Congress rival Manicka Tagore, who finally registered a thin margin of more than 4,000 votes.PMK’s Dharmapuri candidate and Sowmiya Anbumani (NDA) gave a tough fight to DMK’s A Mani before losing by a margin of 21,000 votes. At the end of counting, DMK’s Ganapathy Rajkumar was ahead of Annamalai by more than one lakh votes.Clearly, a divided opposition and a vitriolic anti-NDA campaign that centred on allegations of divisive-communal politics by BJP and Centre starving state of funds helped INDIA bloc’s success in TN. Stalin’s strategy to showcase his priorities of politics and governance helped win over the Tamil audience. In Puducherry, too, Congress candidate and sitting MP V Vaithilingam won, beating his BJP rival A Namassivayam by a margin of around one lakh votes.As soon as the trends showed INDIA bloc leading in most of the constituencies, Stalin visited his father M Karunanidhi’s memorial on Marina beach in Chennai and paid his respects.Later in the evening, Stalin said, “I know my height,” repeating his father’s famous words when asked about his aspirations and probability of his playing a role at the national level.Stalin will leave for Delhi on Wednesday morning to take part in the INDIA bloc meeting. He thanked his alliance leaders and cadres for their efforts “to defeat fascism and to safeguard democracy and the Constitution”.In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the DMK-led alliance bucked the national trend to win 38 seats in TN, leaving only the Theni seat to the then united AIADMK in the company of BJP, and grabbing the lone Puducherry seat as well.With the 2024 Lok Sabha poll victory in TN, Stalin has pulled off a hattrick with his successes in 2019 and 2021 (assembly election) after taking over the DMK reins. Party colleagues and allies say the victory is a referendum for Stalin’s governance.In the opposition camp, while AIADMK rejoiced its second position with an overall vote share of 20%, having contested 32 seats, the BJP was muted in its celebration, having lost all the 19 seats it contested.The opposition contest and campaign centered on “exposing” DMK and Stalin with attacks on their failure to keep the pre-poll promises and practicing corruption and dynasty politics. The ‘DMK files’ (audio recordings of alleged conversations of some DMK functionaries), allegations of misgovernance, poor law and order, arrest and IT searches of senior ministers and charges of nepotism following the elevation of Stalin’s son Udhayanidhi failed to cut ice with the electorate.

Dealing a severe blow to the ruling CPI(M)-led LDF, the Congress-led UDF made a virtual sweep of Kerala, lifting 18 out of 20 Lok Sabha seats on a day that saw the BJP making an electoral breakthrough in the state with actor-politician Suresh Gopi winning the Thrissur seat by a huge margin.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi retained the Wayanad seat with a reduced margin of 3,64,422 votes, as compared to in 2019, defeating CPI's Annie Raja, and BJP state president K Surendran finishing a distant third.

Gandhi had won by a margin of 4,31,770 votes in the 2019 LS polls.

The sole consolation for the LDF was its victory in the Alathur Lok Sabha seat with senior CPI(M) leader and minister in the Pinarayi Vijayan-led government K Radhakrishnan defeating sitting MP of Congress Ramya Haridas by a margin of over 20,000 votes.

Congress' Kerala unit President K. Sudhakaran, who retained his Kannur Lok Sabha seat, on Tuesday demanded that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan should step down, as the CPI-M-led LDF, after claiming a big victory, managed to win just one seat.

"The verdict which saw us (Congress-led UDF) winning 18 seats, and the CPI-M unable to go beyond the one seat they had in 2019 clearly shows that there is a huge anti-Vijayan wave. Hence he should step down," he demanded.

However, CPI-M state Secretary M.V. Govindan said the Lok Sabha election result need not be seen as a setback for our state government.

"... we respect the verdict. We won only one seat in 2019 also and we did well at the 2020 Local bodies’ poll and we retained office in the 2021 Assembly polls. So we will definitely look at what happened," he said.

Union Minister and BJP candidate from Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency in Kerala Rajeev Chandrashekhar on Tuesday expressed his disappointment that he was not able to win the constituency, where Congress leader Shashi Tharoor registered a fourth consecutive win.

He, however, said that his commitment to the people of Thiruvananthapuram will remain steadfast.

"It is disappointing given that we worked very hard. We ran a very positive campaign. 3.4 lakh people supported us which is a record number. I believe we are on the right track," Chandrashekhar told ANI.

"I am disappointed that I could not win. My commitment to Thiruvananthapuram and the people of Thiruvananthapuram remains steadfast," he added.

BJP on Tuesday conquered the final frontier when its star candidate Suresh Gopi emerged victorious from Kerala's Thrissur amid Congress' continued victory march in the southern state, as the neighbouring Tamil Nadu saw the DMK-led bloc humbling its rivals.

In Andhra Pradesh, TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu made a spirited comeback when he led the NDA towards a stunning victory in the Assembly polls, with his party winning 83 seats and leading in 51 in the 175-member state Assembly. The TDP, in company of allies BJP and Janasena Party, took on the mighty YSRCP.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday won the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat in Kerala with a margin of over 3.5 lakh votes against CPI's Annie Raja, according to figures released by the Election Commission.

Gandhi got 6,47,445 votes which was lower than the 7,06,367 votes he got in 2019 from the same constituency.

This time he won by a margin of 3,64,422 votes against his nearest rival, CPI's Annie Raja who got 2,83,023 votes.

In 2019, CPI's P P Suneer who contested against Gandhi had got only 2,74,597 votes and lost by a margin of 4,31,770 votes.

Ending its over-seven-decades-long political drought in Kerala, the BJP on Tuesday finally opened its account in the state through actor-turned politician Suresh Gopi, who cemented his historic victory with a massive lead of over 74,686 votes in the Thrissur Lok Sabha segment. Gopi defeated CPI leader V S Sunilkumar in an exciting fight.

While Gopi garnered a total of 4,12,338 votes, Sunilkumar had to make do with 3,37,652 votes, according to the EC figures.

Congress's senior leader and MP K Muraleedharan settled in the third position with 3,28,124 votes, it said.

Tharoor further said that it was always clear that crossing 400 was impossible for the BJP, attaining 300 was very difficult and reaching 200 would be a challenge."We were always clear that 'chaarso (400) paar' was impossible, it was a fantasy, and 'teenso (300) paar' was very difficult. 'Doso (200) paar', we said, would be a challenge for the BJP," he said.He further said that so far, it looked as if the BJP will not reach the majority mark on its own.

BJP candidate and actor-turned-politician Suresh Gopi won the Thrissur Lok Sabha seat by a remarkable margin of 74,686, according to the Election Commission on Tuesday.

With this, the saffron party opened its maiden account in the state for the lower house of Parliament.

Gopi defeated CPI leader V S Sunilkumar in an exciting fight. While Gopi garnered a total of 4,12,338 votes, Sunilkumar had to make do with 3,37,652 votes, according to the EC figures.

As the Congress-led United Democratic Front in Kerala is poised to win as many as 18 Lok Sabha seats out of 20 in the state, Leader of Opposition in Kerala Assembly VD Satheesan expressed his gratitude to the voters and said that the INDIA alliance will protect democracy and secularism in the country.

"We are grateful to the people and voters of Kerala for granting wonderful victory to the UDF in Kerala. This is a historical victory for UDF in Kerala. We won nearly 18 seats out of 20 seats. . . Unfortunately, we lost the Thrissur seat and the BJP won that seat. We will scrutinise what has happened there," VD Satheesan told ANI.

"At the national level, the Congress-led INDIA alliance has returned with a powerful victory. We will be the protectors of democracy and secularism in future," he added.

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, who won a fourth consecutive time from the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seat, on Tuesday said that the poll results were a lesson for the BJP that they do better when they go on other tracks, like development, instead of communalism.

Tharoor said that the poll results were also a "serious message by the electorate to the BJP that their kind of governance needs to improve colossally".

The Congress leader said that the saffron party will be able to appeal to voters in Kerala only if it goes beyond the "classic sort of north Indian BJP template".

Facing a severe drubbing in the Lok Sabha polls in Kerala, the CPI(M) on Tuesday said the party and the Left Front would examine all the factors that led to their defeat.Talking to reporters here, CPI(M) State Secretary M V Govindan said that although the LDF had suffered a similar drubbing in the 2019 LS polls, it later won the local self-government polls and the assembly election.When reporters asked whether an anti-incumbency wave against the second Pinarayi Vijayan government was the reason for the mass drubbing of the Left candidates in the state, he trivialised the question and said it alone was not the factor.

As the Congress-led United Democratic Front in Kerala is poised to win as many as 18 Lok Sabha seats out of 20 in the state, Leader of Opposition in Kerala Assembly VD Satheesan expressed his gratitude to the voters and said that the INDIA alliance will protect democracy and secularism in the country."We are grateful to the people and voters of Kerala for granting wonderful victory to the UDF in Kerala. This is a historical victory for UDF in Kerala. We won nearly 18 seats out of 20 seats. . . Unfortunately, we lost the Thrissur seat and the BJP won that seat. We will scrutinise what has happened there," VD Satheesan told ANI."At the national level, the Congress-led INDIA alliance has returned with a powerful victory. We will be the protectors of democracy and secularism in future," he added.

The political rivals asserted that the fight would be between their candidates V S Sunilkumar (CPI-M) and K Muraleedharan (Congress). The counting of postal votes even gave the impression that their calculations might go right, as Sunilkumar initially enjoyed an upper hand.

But Gopi came to the picture in the subsequent rounds, increased his lead consistently, and then there was no looking back. With strong lead, Suresh Gopi seems to have proved wrong, the long-drawn claims of the traditional fronts that Kerala would remain elusive for the saffron party as always.

The BJP on Tuesday inched closer to realising its dream of getting an elected MP from Kerala, with actor-politician Suresh Gopi ensuring a virtually unassailable lead of over 74,000 votes in the Thrissur parliamentary segment.

Gopi's win would put an end to the over seven decades-long political drought in Kerala for the BJP.

The Election Commission is yet to announce the results officially but as per its latest update, Gopi is leading by a huge margin of 74,686 votes against his nearest rival and Left candidate V S Sunilkumar.

The trend comes as a rude shock for the ruling CPI (M)-led LDF and the Congress-headed UDF which even rubbished till the last minute, the various exit polls that predicted a Gopi show and the chances of lotus blooming in the southern state.

BJP candidate Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday conceded defeat to Congress' Shashi Tharoor in the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seat, but said that the election result in Kerala indicates that people are increasingly supporting the saffron party.

Chandrasekhar, who is the Union Minister of State for Information Technology in the outgoing cabinet, told PTI that it was "disappointing" that he lost, even though the BJP fought a very strong battle in the state.

As the counting of votes enters the final rounds, Suresh Gopi’s margin of victory has crossed 73,000. The actor-turned-politician said that he owes this "win" to the secular voters of Thrissur and that he bows before them.With his imminent victory, finally the 'lotusl has bloomed in Kerala, even when BJP has no legislator in the 140-member Kerala Assembly.“I pay my 'pranam' to all the gods as this was a huge struggle for me and the gods have rewarded me. I was swimming across the tide and the people of Thrissur have showered their blessings on me,” said Gopi.

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor is leading with 15,879 votes in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seat against NDA candidate and Minister of State Rajeev Chandrasekhar.

Initially, Chandrasekhar was ahead with 23,000 votes, however, the trends have changed and Tharoor gained the lead after the officials started counting votes from the coastal areas.In the 2014 Lok Sabha election, Shashi Tharoor was also trailing initially against the BJP veteran O. Rajagopal by at least 15,000 votes. However, in the end, Tharoor emerged as the winner.

The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) is leading in 18 out of the 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the CPIM (led) Left Democratic Front (LDF) is leading in one seat each in Thrissur and Alathur respectively, the Election Commission said on Tuesday as counting of votes progressed in the parliamentary elections.As per information posted on the Election Commission of India (ECI) website, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and party's general secretary KC Venugopal are leading on their seats- Waynad and Alappuzha respectively.BJP's Suresh Gopi was leading with 400706 votes in Thrissur constituency with a margin of 73091 votes over V S SunilKumar of the CPI and Congress' Muraleedharan of the Congress who polled 319560 votes as per data on the poll body's website at 2 pm.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was leading by 3,28,460 votes in Wayanad constituency over his nearest rival CPI's Annie Raja, as per Election Commission data. Congress sitting MP Shashi Tharoor took a lead over BJP's Rajeev Chandrasekhar in Thiruvananthapuram with 325896 votes and CPI's Pannian Raveendran in third spot, data by EC said.Congress' KC Venugopal was leading with 364811 votes against nearest rival AM Ariff of the CPI (M) while BJP's Sobha Surendran trailed in the third place.The polling in Kerala was held in single phase on April 26. The voter turnout was recorded at 71.27 per cent. Out of the total 2,77,49,158 voters in Kerala, a total of 1,97,77,478 exercised their franchise.

The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) is leading in 18 out of the 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the CPIM (led) Left Democratic Front (LDF) is leading in one seat each in Thrissur and Alathur respectively, the Election Commission said on Tuesday as counting of votes progressed in the parliamentary elections.As per information posted on the Election Commission of India (ECI) website, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and party's general secretary KC Venugopal are leading on their seats- Waynad and Alappuzha respectively.BJP's Suresh Gopi was leading with 400706 votes in Thrissur constituency with a margin of 73091 votes over V S SunilKumar of the CPI and Congress' Muraleedharan of the Congress who polled 319560 votes as per data on the poll body's website at 2 pm.

After trailing by over 20,000 votes behind BJP candidate Rajeev Chandrasekhar in the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seat, Congress' Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday regained the lead with a margin of over 11,000 votes.During the initial hours of counting, the fight between Chandrasekhar and Tharoor was neck-and-neck with each taking a lead of a few thousand votes.By noon, the BJP leader gained a healthy lead of around 24,000 votes over Tharoor, who is hoping to win a fourth time from Thiruvananthapuram LS seat.However, more than an hour later, Tharoor took back the lead from Chandrasekhar by a margin of 11,815 votes.

As per leading trends, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor leads in Thiruvananthapuram with vote margin of 5714.

After the halfway stage of counting of votes for the Thrissur Lok Sabha seat in Kerala, BJP's actor-turned-politician Suresh Gopi's lead over CPI's V.S. Sunilkumar has swelled to more than 60,000 votes, raising the hopes of the Lotus blooming in the southern state for the first time.Former Union Minister Prakash Javadekar, who reached the popular actor's residence in the state capital here, told the media that Prime Minister Modi has changed Kerala’s politics forever.“For 75 years, Kerala saw bi-polar politics but PM Modi has changed that forever. We will win in Thrissur and Thiruvananthapuram,” said a confident Javadekar.

After the halfway stage of counting of votes for the Thrissur Lok Sabha seat in Kerala, BJP's actor-turned-politician Suresh Gopi's lead over CPI's V.S. Sunilkumar has swelled to more than 60,000 votes, raising the hopes of the Lotus blooming in the southern state for the first time.Former Union Minister Prakash Javadekar, who reached the popular actor's residence in the state capital here, told the media that Prime Minister Modi has changed Kerala’s politics forever.“For 75 years, Kerala saw bi-polar politics but PM Modi has changed that forever. We will win in Thrissur and Thiruvananthapuram,” said a confident Javadekar.In Thiruvananthapuram, BJP's Rajeev Chandrasekhar has increased his lead to over 23,000 votes against sitting Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, raising hopes for a second seat for the BJP in Kerala.

Bharatiya Janata Party candidate Rajeev Chandrasekhar is leading from the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seat in Kerala while veteran Congress leader Shashi Tharoor is trailing from his bastion, as per leads.Rajeev Chandrasekhar is leading the seat with a margin of 13,336 votes, leaving behind the veteran Congress leader Shashi Tharoor.According to the latest data of the Election Commission of India, Rajeev Chandrasekhar has got 147312 while Shashi Tharoor has got 131696 votes.In Kerala, the Congress-led UDF alliance is leading in 16 of the 20 seats, while the BJP leads in Thrissur and Thiruvananthapuram. If the BJP holds on to the leas it will mark the first instance of the party winning a Lok Sabha seat from the state.

UDF's M P Abdussamad Samadani leads by over 60,000 votes against his nearest rival in Kerala's Ponnani Lok Sabha seat. This substantial lead underscores the strong support for Samadani and the UDF in the constituency

Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Rajeev Chandrasekhar was leading by more than 8,000 votes against Congress rival Shashi Tharoor in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seat on Tuesday.According to the Election Commission of India (ECI) data, Chandrasekhar was leading by 8,401 votes (103,115 votes) against Tharoor with 94,714 votes.Former MP Pannian Raveendran of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) was trailing in the third position with 71,265 votes.Earlier in the morning, Chandrasekhar started his day by offering prayers and seeking blessings at the Pazhavangadi Sree Maha Ganapathy and Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temples.

CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury says, "Exit poll was done to influence the share market and those who wanted to make money in the share market yesterday made money. Now the reality is coming in front of you. Now let the full results come, after that, we will tell you...INDIA alliance is doing well."

Congress's young MLA Shafi Parambil is leading by 12,639 votes in volatile Vadakara constituency in north Kerala against his nearest rival candidate CPI (M)'s K K Shailja as some rounds of votes were counted on Tuesday. Parambil gained an initial lead of over 80 votes over Shailja when the postal votes were started counting. Both Shailja and Parambil switched their leads at various phases of counting. But, later Parambil was seen steadily increasing his lead. As per the latest figures of the Election Commission, Parambil raised his lead to 12,639 votes.

AICC general secretary K C Venugopal raised his lead to 11,833 votes in Kerala's Alappuzha constituency as the counting of votes was progressing in the segment. CPI (M) leader and sitting MP A M Ariff is trailing at the present phase as Venugopal was seen steadily increasing lead. Ariff was the lone Left MP who could reach the Lok Sabha from the southern state in 2019 polls. BJP's senior leader Shobha Surendran is in the third position.

As the vote counting progresses, Rahul Gandhi has taken a substantial lead in the Wayanad constituency, amassing over 80,000 votes more than his closest competitor.

BJP's Chandrasekhar is currently leading against Shashi Tharoor in Thiruvananthapuram. This development marks a significant moment in the constituency's electoral battle, showcasing the competitive nature of the race and the shifting political dynamics in the region.

The Congress-led UDF maintained its lead in the majority of seats, with trends from the counting of EVM ballots on Tuesday showing its candidates having a clear edge over their nearest rivals from the CPI(M)-led LDF and the BJP-led NDA. The candidates of the ruling LDF were trailing in most constituencies, but in the Alathur seat, CPI(M)'s K Radhakrishnan maintained a slight lead against his nearest rival, Ramya Haridas of the Congress.

Former Congress chief, Rahul Gandhi is leading from Wayanad in the early trends

"Expectations were set on 26th April because once people have cast their votes and the boxes are sealed in the strong room then there is no further room for any argument or debate...There was no cross-voting in the previous elections. We have neither benefitted from cross-voting in the past nor do we expect to see any cross-voting this time...We will win on our merit or we will fail but my view is that we are winning," says Tharoor

Early trends show Congress-led UDF leading in Kerala

Counting for Lok Sabha seats of Kerala polled on April 26 begins.

Preparations for counting of votes polled in the April 26 Lok Sabha elections in Kerala are complete, and the process will take place in 20 centres across the state on Tuesday. A total of 194 candidates are vying for the 20 seats in the state, making the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls a crucial battleground for the CPI(M)-led ruling LDF, the Congress-headed UDF and the BJP-led NDA. According to Chief Electoral Officer Sanjay Kaul, measures have been taken to ensure that the vote counting process is transparent and secure. The counting will start at 8 AM, beginning with the postal ballots.

One of the key highlights of the 2024 elections was the fierce competition between the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Indian National Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF). The LDF, buoyed by its recent performance, fielded heavyweight candidates across the state, sending out a clear message that its alliance within the INDIA bloc held no importance for the Left coalition in Kerala.

In Thiruvananthapuram, the contest between Congress's Shashi Tharoor and LDF's Pannian Raveendran promised an intense electoral showdown, with the NDA also vying for a breakthrough.

Thiruvananthapuram: A high-profile seat where the battle between the Congress and the BJP is intense, reflecting the state's political divide.Ernakulam: Known for its urban electorate, this constituency often sees close contests between the Congress and the Left.Pathanamthitta: The Sabarimala issue has made this a crucial battleground, with BJP, Congress, and Left vying for dominance.Thrissur: A mix of urban and rural voters, it frequently sees tight races, with the Congress and Left parties traditionally strong here.Kasaragod: With significant communal and developmental issues, this constituency witnesses fierce competition, primarily between the Congress and BJP.

Rahul Gandhi's vote share in Wayanad is set for a big erosion, the VMR exit poll showed. According to the poll, if the Congress leader had garnered 64% vote share in the last elections in 2019, his vote share will this time come down to 50%.

Wayanad has been Rahul Gandhi's primary political home ever since his defeat to BJP bigwig Smriti Irani in Amethi, his family's pocket borough.

One of the key highlights of the 2024 elections was the fierce competition between the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Indian National Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF). The LDF, buoyed by its recent performance, fielded heavyweight candidates across the state, sending out a clear message that its alliance within the INDIA bloc held no importance for the Left coalition in Kerala.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on March 16, 2024, announced the upcoming Lok Sabha election dates. Polling for the 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala took place on April 26, 2024. Like in past General Elections, Kerala held its elections on a single day, in the second phase of polling for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The election notification was issued on March 28 and the last date for submission of nominations was April 4.

The ruling Left in Kerala and the Congress on Sunday rejected as "baseless" the exit poll predictions which said that the BJP-led NDA will come to power at the Centre and also open its account in the state where it has not had an MP in the past. Both the LDF and the Congress were of the view that they would get seats in excess of what the exit polls predicted. The same view was expressed by the BJP in Kerala with its state president K Surendran claiming that the party would get more seats than what was predicted in the exit polls.

Though two of the Exit Polls on Saturday night predicted a complete washout for the Left, others suggested that the Left might win up to three or four seats.

The Exit Polls also brought cheer to the BJP, which had its best-ever campaign in the state, bolstered by multiple visits from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to woo the electorate.

The ‘Modi magic’ appears to have worked, as the Exit Polls predicted more than one seat for the BJP.

With counting just a few hours away, all those who led the intense campaigns for the 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala are awaiting the results with bated breath. Votes will be counted starting at 8 am on Tuesday at the 20 counting centers, where elaborate and foolproof arrangements have been put in place.

One person who will be the center of attention is Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who led the campaign for the Left in this General Election. CM Vijayan is likely keen to forget the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, where the Left, despite expecting a strong performance, ended up securing just one seat.