Lok Sabha election: INDIA bloc sweeps Tamil Nadu, but DMK's vote share declines
The DMK which secured around 33% votes in 2019 fell to 26.30% this time, while its ally Congress managed to retain its around 10% vote share.
Anna Arivalayam
CHENNAI: The DMK-led INDIA bloc on Tuesday swept the Parliamentary polls in Tamil Nadu, delivering a killer blow to the BJP led NDA and principal opposition party AIADMK, both of whom drew a blank in the Dravidian hinterland.
Repeating the 2004 performance of the alliance, the INDIA bloc secured all 40 seats, including Puducherry with victory margins hovering well over a lakh votes in all but only around half a dozen seats in the state.
The Congress party compensated for its one-seat loss in 2019 and matched the rest of the INDIA bloc allies by also securing a hundred per cent strike rate in the state. Alliance leader DMK which 'won' (at 7pm Tuesday) all 22 seats it contested, however, suffered a decline of nearly seven percent in its vote share compared to the previous LS poll.
The DMK which secured around 33% votes in 2019 fell to 26.30% this time, while its ally Congress managed to retain its around 10% vote share.
The BJP, which was keen on opening its account in Tamil Nadu following a robust campaign led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had to be content with a spike in its poll percentage to 11.03, which it managed contesting in 24 seats on its own without the two formidable Dravidian allies.
The opposition AIADMK did marginally better than its previous LS poll by 'increasing' its vote share this time to 20.52%, which was only one per cent more than what it managed in 2019. Among the biggest takeaways for the INDIA parties was the performance of Thol Thirumavalavan led VCK, which contested on its own symbol in both its seats, thereby inching closer to its dream of securing the recognition of the Election Commission of India.
Bureaucrat turned Congress MP elect Sasikanth Senthil emerged as the biggest victor of the alliance with his victory margin going well past five lakh votes in Tiruvallur constituency, followed by DMK trreasurer T R Baalu who also romped home in style, securing a victory margin of over four lakh votes till 7pm.
