UDF Wins Kerala Assembly Election 2026: Congress Alliance Sweeps State, LDF Falls After 10 Years

["The United Democratic Front, led by the Indian National Congress, has secured a decisive majority in the 2026 Kerala Legislative Assembly election, ending a decade of Left Democratic Front governance. Final results confirmed the UDF winning 98 seats in the 140-seat assembly, with the LDF reduced to 38 seats and the BJP-NDA alliance holding 4. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan suffered a shocking personal defeat in his Dharmadom constituency, a seat he had held for five consecutive terms, losing to the Congress candidate by over 4,200 votes.","UDF leader and incoming Chief Minister-designate K. Muraleedharan addressed jubilant supporters at the KPCC office in Thiruvananthapuram, attributing the victory to the people's mandate against corruption, unemployment and the mishandling of the 2024 Wayanad landslide rehabilitation. The IUML, which contested 27 seats and won 24, emerged as the single strongest performer proportionally and will play a crucial role in the new government. Kerala Congress (M) also posted strong gains in central Kerala.","Political analysts point to several factors behind the historic swing: deep anti-incumbency after 10 years in power, discontent among NRI communities over welfare failures, the handling of the gold smuggling case that implicated persons close to the CMO, and a youth vote that broke decisively for change. Women voters, who turned out in record numbers, are credited as a decisive factor \u2014 exit polls had shown a significant gender gap favouring the UDF among first-time women voters.","Celebrations erupted across Kerala and in Malayali communities worldwide the moment the trend became clear by mid-morning. Fan parks, community halls, and WhatsApp groups were flooded with jubilation. Gulf Keralites watching through the night from Dubai, Doha, Riyadh and Kuwait reported watching the counting through livestreams, many taking the day off work. The new government is expected to be sworn in within the next 10 days, with the formation of the cabinet closely watched for signals on governance priorities including Wayanad rehabilitation and NRI affairs."]