The counting of votes for Kerala local body polls, held in three phases, started on Wednesday morning. The poll were held just months ahead of the scheduled assembly election. The main contenders in the fray are the ruling LDF, the Congress-led UDF, and the BJP.

As per the latest trends, in Gram Panchayats polls (941), LDF is leading on 514, UDF on 375, NDA on 23, and others on 28. In Block Panchayats (152), LDF is leading on 108, UDF on 44. In District Panchayats (14), LDF is leading over 10, UDF is leading on four. In Municipality (86), LDF is leading over 35, UDF over 45, NDA over two, and others over four. In Corporations (6), LDF is leading over 3 and UDF over 3. 

Coming months ahead of the assembly polls in the state, the results are keenly watched as an indicator of the electorate’s mood. While the UDF is hoping to see gains, all eyes are on the BJP to see if it can make ay gains in the state that has kept the saffron party out so far.

Emboldened by the recent gains in Hyderabad local polls, the BJP is hoping to gain ground in Kerala too.

“The Left front is going to achieve an iconic victory in the polls. Those who have voted so far have given us great support,” he told reporters in Kannur.

Postal ballots, including the ones issued to COVID-19 patients and quarantined voters, were counted first. Postal votes received by returning officers till 8 am on Wednesday were also considered for counting. The EVM votes will taken up after that. The results of all local bodies will declared by noon, the Election Commission said.

The polls, held amid the pandemic, were held in three phases, the last of which was on Monday (December 14) in the four northernmost districts. As per the State EC, Kozhikode district recorded the highest turnout with 78.98%, followed by Malappuram (78.86%) and Kannur (77.54%) Kasaragod recorded the lowest voter turnout with 77.14 %.