The state of Tamil Nadu is going for assembly elections on April 6, Tuesday, and polling on the 234 seats will be held in a single phase. The votes will be counted on May 2. In the 2021 Tamil Nadu assembly elections, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Congress are contesting the polls together while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) are fighting together. 

AIADMK’s Edappadi K Palaniswami is currently the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu while MK Stalin-led DMK is the main Opposition party in the state assembly. 

In the 2021 polls, AIADMK has fielded a total of 173 candidates while BJP has fielded 20. On the other hand, Congress will fight on 173 seats and DMK on 25. 

The Tamil Nadu polls will this time see many heavyweight candidates, from Kamal Hassan of Makkal Needhi Maiam fighting from Coimbatore South to Khusbu Sundar fielded as a BJP from Thousand Lights. 

Apart from, other key candidates for the Tami Nadu assembly polls include Palaniswami from Eddapadi constituency, AIADMK leader, and deputy CM O Pannerselvam from Bodinayakkanur; MK Stalin from Kolathur; DMK’s Udhayanidhi Stalin from Chepauk; BJP’s L Murugan from Dharpuram; BJP’s H Raja from Karaikudi constituency.

This is the first state assembly elections after the death of the towering presence of ‘Kalaignar’ M Karunanidhi and ‘Amma’ J Jayalalitha.

DMK has been out of power since 2011 and its seat share in the assembly has not crossed double-digit since 2001.

Meanwhile, BJP is looking to enter the southern state with AIADMK. Asaduddin Owaisi’s All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) has also entered the fray with TTV Dhinakaran’s The Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK). Owaisi-Dhinakaran alliance can corner some Muslim votes and affect DMK.