Tamil Nadu Election Results 2024: The INDIA alliance has once swept Tamil Nadu, with the DMK looking set for 22 wins and Congress 9. The southern state witnessed a three-cornered contest, with the ruling DMK, AIADMK, and the BJP-led NDA in the fray. Tamil Nadu is one of the three states in the southern belt where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has struggled to gain ground as two Dravidian parties - DMK and AIADMK - have dominated the state for decades. However, this time, the BJP under the leadership of K Annamalai appears to have made significant inroads. The BJP contested parliamentary without its long-time ally in the state - AIADMK.
Axis My India's exit poll has predicted 2-4 seats for the NDA and 33-37 for the INDIA bloc, which comprises DMK, Congress, and the Left. The poll has predicted a close contest in Coimbatore, where Annamalai is in the fray. In 2019, the DMK-led alliance snatched 38 of 39 seats, leaving just one seat for the AIADMK. This time, the saffron party has allied with Anbumani Ramadoss's Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), GK Vasan-led Tamil Maanila Congress (Moopanar), TTV Dhinakaran's Amma Makkal Munnettra Kazagam (AMMK), and four other smaller regional parties. The BJP is contesting on 19 seats, PMK on 10, TMC-M on 3. From the ruling alliance, DMK is fighting on 21 seats, Congress 9, the Communist Party of India, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) are contesting on 2 seats each. In the southern state, most seats witnessed a direct three-way fight between the ruling DMK and its rival AIADMK, besides the BJP. K Annamalai, who led the charge for the BJP, is contesting from Coimbatore. Besides Coimbatore, which is one of the most keenly watched seats, other high-profile constituencies are Thoothukudi (Kanimozhi Karunanidhi), Nilgiris (DMK's A Raja vs BJP's L Murugan), Sriperumbudur (TR Baalu), and Sivaganga (Karti Chidambaram). Former Telangana Governor and BJP's Tamilisai Soundararajan is contesting from South Chennai, TTV Dhinakaran from Theni, and former Chief Minister O Panneerselvam from Ramanathapuram as an Independent. Soundararajan is up against incumbent DMK MP T Sumathy alias Tamizhachi Thangapandian, while the AIADMK has fielded ex-MP Dr J Jayavardhan, who won from here in 2014. Tamil Nadu went to polls in the first phase on April 19.