The ruling party, TVK, won a resounding victory in the by-election held in Tamil Nadu in the Madurantakam (reserved) and Dharapuram (reserved) assembly constituencies. TVK captured both of these constituencies, which had been held by the AIADMK. With this, the strength of TVK MLAs in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly has risen to 109.
In both constituencies, the AIADMK was pushed to third place.
In the last general election, the DMK, which had finished third in the Madurantakam constituency, moved up to second place as several alliance parties withdrew. In the Dharapuram constituency, the party retained second place. In both constituencies, Naam Tamilar Katchi and left parties lost their deposits.
In the Tamil Nadu Assembly election held last April, TVK, which won 108 constituencies, has been governing with the support of the Congress, Left parties, VCK, and IUML, which were part of the DMK alliance.
Of the MLAs elected on behalf of the AIADMK, 6 resigned from their posts and joined TVK. Following this, by-elections were announced for the two vacant constituencies of Madurantakam (reserved) and Dharapuram (reserved). Voting was held on Oct. 6, and the votes cast were counted on Friday (Oct. 9).
In Dharapuram...: In the Dharapuram constituency, 22 candidates contested, including P. Sathyabama on behalf of TVK, Sou. Suganya on behalf of DMK, K. Banumathi on behalf of AIADMK, M. Karthika on behalf of NTK, and P. Lakshmanan on behalf of the Communist Party of India. Here, 80.25 percent of the votes were polled. Out of a total of 2,23,306 voters, 1,79,214 people cast their votes.
The votes cast were counted in 23 rounds at 14 tables at the LRG Government Women's Arts College near the Tiruppur District Collector's Office. First, the counting of postal ballots began at 8 a.m. At around 8:30 a.m., the counting of votes recorded in electronic voting machines began.
Initially, the lead changed: in the first 4 rounds, AIADMK candidate K. Bhanumathi was in the lead. By the end of the 5th round, the lead changed. From the 5th round onward, Sathyabama took the lead. She maintained that lead until the final round. By the end of the 11th round, DMK overtook AIADMK and took 2nd place.
After the final round, including postal votes, P. Sathyabama won with 66,841 votes. DMK candidate Sou. Suganya received 57,370 votes, and AIADMK candidate K. Bhanumathi received 45,280 votes. NTK candidate M. Karthika received 5,268 votes, and Communist Party of India candidate P. Lakshmanan received 1,157 votes.
Madhuranthakam: In the Madhuranthakam constituency, TVK candidate Maragatham Kumaravel won with 74,048 votes. DMK candidate Paranthaman, who contested against her, received 54,008 votes, and AIADMK candidate Kanitha Sampath received 47,450 votes. Maragatham Kumaravel, who had been leading from the start, defeated DMK candidate Paranthaman by a margin of 20,040 votes at the end of 27 rounds.
Out of a total of 2,13,788 voters, 1,84,413 people cast their votes. Vote counting began at 8 a.m. under tight security at the Athoor Community Development Integrated Training Center near Chengalpattu. The counting was slightly delayed due to malfunctions in 4 voting machines. Votes were counted in a total of 27 rounds.
Maragatham Kumaravel (Madurantakam) and Dharapuram (reserved), who won in the by-election, had both won on behalf of the AIADMK in the last general election. They have now contested in the same constituencies on behalf of TVK and have been elected as MLAs.
By-election
Madurantakam
Total votes-2,13,788
Votes cast- 1,84,413
Maragatham Kumaravel (TVK) - 74,048
Paranthaman (DMK) - 54,008
Kanitha Sampath (AIADMK) - 47,450
Janakiraman (Naam Tamilar Katchi) - 2709
Sugandhi (Marxist) - 1986
May Assembly Election
Madurantakam
Party, Votes
AIADMK - 69,284
TVK - 62,090
DMK - 59,838
NTK - 4,950
....
Dharapuram...
By-election:
Total votes - 2,23,306
Votes cast - 1,79,214
P. Sathyabama - TVK - 66,841
Sow. Suganya - DMK - 57,370
K. Bhanumathi - AIADMK - 45,280
M. Karthika - NTK - 5,268
Pa. Lakshmanan - Communist Party of India - 1,157.
2026 General Election (April) details:
Party --- Votes
AIADMK - 81,100
DMK - 64,373
TVK - 46,438
NTK - 6,026.
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Since victory in these two constituencies is crucial for the TVK, which is governing without an absolute majority, the party’s leader and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Joseph Vijay campaigned vigorously. He campaigned twice in both constituencies and also held roadshows to seek votes. Likewise, with several major parties having withdrawn from the alliance, DMK leader M.K. Stalin campaigned intensively to prove the party’s strength and retain its traditional vote base. AIADMK general secretary Edappadi Palaniswami said that people should teach a fitting lesson to those who betrayed the party and are contesting on behalf of the TVK.
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