Kerala local body election result: BJP emerges as single-largest party in Thiruvananthapuram, Shashi Tharoor's bastion
Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram Shashi Tharoor on Saturday welcomed the outcome of the Kerala local body elections, calling the results a clear mandate
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as single-largest party in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram corporation, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor's bastion, in the state local body elections, counting of votes for which began at 8 am on Saturday, December 13.
As per the trends at around 2:45 pm, BJP emerged as the single-largest party and was close to the half-way mark of 51. It is set to capture power with the help of Independents. Follow Kerala local body election results live updates
In the 101-member municipal corporation, the BJP has already secured 50 wards, just one short of the majority mark, while the ruling LDF suffered a major setback, reduced to 29 seats. The Congress-led UDF won 19 wards, with two seats going to Independents, and polling in one ward was cancelled following the death of a candidate last week.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi termed the Trivandrum win a watershed moment in Kerala's politics and expressed gratitude to the BJP workers for the "spectacular results".
Reacting to the civic body results, the prime minister said it is a day to recall the work and struggles of generations of karyakartas (workers) in Kerala, who worked at the grassroots, which ensured today's result became a reality.
"Thank you Thiruvananthapuram! The mandate the BJP-NDA got in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation is a watershed moment in Kerala's politics," he wrote on 'X'.
Kerala civic body election results
While the NDA was ahead in Thiruvananthapuram, the UDF was leading on 7869 wards. The Left Democratic Front (LDF), led by the CPI(M), is ahead on 6505 wards, while the NDA, spearheaded by the BJP, was leading on 1426 wards.
Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram Shashi Tharoor on Saturday welcomed the outcome of the Kerala local body elections, calling the results a clear mandate and a celebration of the state's democratic spirit.
Taking to X, Tharoor congratulated the United Democratic Front (UDF) for what he described as an impressive performance across local bodies, terming it a powerful signal ahead of the next state legislative elections.
Tharoor also acknowledged the BJP's breakthrough in the state capital. He congratulated the party on its "historic performance" and "significant victory" in the Thiruvananthapuram city corporation, calling it a notable shift in the capital's political landscape. Tharoor added that while he had campaigned for a change from decades of LDF rule, voters chose another alternative promising governance change, underscoring the essence of democracy.
Counting of votes began at 8 am across 244 counting centres in the state under tight security arrangements. Maharaja's College, one of the key counting centres in Ernakulam district, witnessed the presence of party workers and leaders as trends started favouring the UDF in several wards.
