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Congress Unveils 2nd Candidate List for Kerala Polls, BJP Also Names Contenders

The Indian National Congress has announced its second list of 37 candidates for the upcoming Kerala Legislative Assembly elections scheduled for April 9. The Bharatiya Janata Party has also released candidate lists, setting up a key contest in Dharmadam where its nominee will challenge Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The elections will see the BJP-led NDA and Congress-led UDF attempting to unseat the incumbent CPI(M)-led LDF government, which has been in power for about ten years. The counting of votes is scheduled for May 4, with the current assembly's term ending on May 23.

Key Points: Congress, BJP Release Candidate Lists for Kerala Assembly Elections

  • Congress releases second list of 37 candidates
  • BJP fields candidate against CM Pinarayi Vijayan
  • Elections scheduled for April 9, results May 4
  • LDF government seeks to retain power after a decade
2 min read

Congress releases 2nd list of 37 candidates for Keralam Assembly polls

Congress announces 37 candidates for Kerala polls, BJP fields contenders against CM Vijayan. Key battles and candidate lists revealed for April 9 elections.

"BJP has fielded K Ranjith from Dharmadam against Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. - Report"

Thiruvananthapuram, March 19

Congress on Thursday announced its second list of 37 candidates for the April 9 Keralam Assembly elections.

As per the released list, TO Mohanan is contesting from Kannur, Senapathy Venu from Udumbanchola, and Santhakumar from the Adoor (SC) seat. While Sandeep Varier is contesting from Trikaripur, M Liju is running from Kayamkulam, and Abin Varkey from Aranmula.

In the first list, Congress has announced 55 candidates. The party fielded Kerala Congress Committee President Sunny Joseph from the Peravoor seat. Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan has been fielded from the Paravur seat.

K Muraleedharan, former MP and son of veteran Congress leader and former Chief Minister of Kerala, K Karunakaran, from the Vattiyoorkavu seat.

The 2026 Kerala Legislative Assembly elections will be held in a single phase on April 9, with the counting of votes scheduled to take place on May 4. The tenure of the current assembly is scheduled to end on May 23.

The Model Code of Conduct comes into place, setting in process elections to the 140-member State Assembly, which is also known as the Kerala Niyamasabha.

Both the BJP-led NDA and Congress-led UDF seek to unseat the incumbent Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led LDF and gain control of the 140-member assembly. The LDF-led government has governed the state for around a decade.

Earlier, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday released the second list of 39 candidates for the upcoming assembly elections in Kerala.

BJP has fielded K Ranjith from Dharmadam against Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

Former Mizoram Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan has been fielded from Aranmula. BJP has fielded Ashwini ML from Kasaragod, PR Sivasankar from Ernakulam, Vathsala Prasanna Kumar from Paravur, and Renu Suresh from Kongad.

BJP had released its first list of 47 candidates on March 19, fielding the party's state President Rajeev Chandrasekhar from Nemom seat and former Union Minister of State for External Affairs of India, V Muraleedharan, from Kazhakoottam seat.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

R
Rohit P
Interesting to see K Muraleedharan contesting from Vattiyoorkavu. The legacy of Karunakaran uncle is still strong in some areas. But Kerala politics is about development now, not just family names. Let's see what work he has done for the constituency.
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Siddharth J
The real fight seems to be in seats like Dharmadam and Nemom. BJP putting up a candidate against CM Vijayan directly is a bold move. But in Kerala, it's traditionally a UDF vs LDF battle. BJP making it a triangular contest in some seats could split anti-incumbency votes.
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Anjali F
As a voter from Kayamkulam, I'm glad the candidate lists are final. Now we can properly evaluate who is standing. Hope all parties focus on local issues like employment, infrastructure, and healthcare, not just national politics.
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David E
Following this from abroad. Kerala's elections are always fascinating with high voter literacy and turnout. The LDF has been in power for a while, so anti-incumbency might be a factor. But they also have a strong organizational base.
K
Karthik V
Respectfully, I feel both UDF and LDF have failed to address the state's financial crisis. We keep hearing about development but see very little on the ground. Maybe a change is needed, but is the third alternative any better? Tough choice for voters this time.

We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.

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