AIADMK eyes young blood to revive party’s hopes

CHENNAI: With the changing demographics of the electorate, which includes over 2.30 crore voters in the 20 to 39 age group out of a total of 6.36 crore, the AIADMK leadership, the principal opposition party, is placing an increasing emphasis on engaging younger voters.

This move aligns with the shifting political landscape ahead of the crucial Assembly polls in 2026 in the Dravidian heartland, where popular actor Vijay has entered the political arena, seeking to attract youth votes to establish his party, Tamiliga Vettri Kazhagam, as an alternative to the Dravidian majors.

AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami has stressed the importance of infusing fresh, youthful energy into the party. He reiterated this during the party’s first virtual meeting with district secretaries on Sunday, urging senior leaders and district secretaries to actively promote young members in key party roles, including booth-level committees and other organisational wings.

As part of the ongoing efforts to appeal to younger voters, the party recently launched the ‘Ilam Thalaimurai Vilayattu Veerargal Ani’ (Young Sports Personalities Wing) to attract popular and emerging sports figures into the party fold. This initiative aims to counter both the DMK and TVK, which are trying to gain a significant chunk of the youth vote, which makes up over 39% of the State’s electorate.

Palaniswami has expressed concern over the party’s declining vote share of 89.38 lakh votes in 2024 polls by fielding candidates in 32 constituencies. He openly admitted in a meeting with party functionaries last October that the AIADMK had seen a 10% to 15% decline in its vote share following the passing of senior cadre and supporters of party founder MG Ramachandran. He urged functionaries to rope in youngsters into the party to help revitalise the declining vote share.

The Salem strongman further gave a clarion call for functionaries for intensified efforts to enrol educated and politically active youngsters into the party’s IT and youth wings. However, despite his calls, progress has been slow as there have been limited efforts on the ground from district secretaries and branch-level leaders, with only a few leaders actively taking up the initiative.

The IT wing, along with the Ilaijarkal (Youth) and Ilam Pengal Pasarai (Young Women’s Wing), has seen some activity, with many youth enrolling during the party’s drive last year. However, this was largely confined to specific regions, as many senior leaders have not shown much interest in attracting young members, according to a party functionary involved in the process.

Leaders such as former minister R B Udhayakumar and Kadambur C Raju have been pushing branch secretaries and cadre to reach out to young people. However, recent attempts to establish a wing for young sports personalities have struggled to gain traction, as DMK youth wing leader Udhayanidhi Stalin has successfully engaged young sports personalities through various initiatives. “After Jayalalithaa’s demise, the party has faced numerous challenges, including leadership issues, and we’ve lost valuable time in engaging with young voters,” said a senior leader.