Tamil Nadu urban local body elections results: Counting of votes began at 8 am 

The counting of votes for the Tamil Nadu urban local body elections commenced at 8:00 a.m. today. Single-phase elections were held in Tamil Nadu on February 19 to fill 12,838 positions in 21 corporations, 138 municipalities, 490 town panchayats, and 649 urban local bodies.

There were 74,416 candidates in the campaign, with a few independents among them.While counting votes for the urban local body elections on Tuesday, some 2,400 officials and 7,200 police personnel from the Greater Chennai, Avadi, and Tambaram commissioners were deployed. 

In 17 corporations, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) is now in the lead. In three municipalities and 41 town panchayats, the AIADMK now leads, while the Congress leads in three cities and 15 town panchayats. 

All districts are supervised by strong police teams led by their respective District Superintendents. A Deputy Superintendent level official oversees security at each counting centre, backed up by a large police force recruited from the Tamil Nadu municipal police, Tamil Nadu Special Police, and officers from the police camps. 

According to the Tamil Nadu State Election Commission (TNSEC) website, the DMK has won 59 wards in Chennai. Out of the 200 wards in Chennai, more than 77 have announced their results. 

Cuddalore Corporation is swept by the ruling DMK. The results are in for 32 of Cuddalore’s 45 wards, with the DMK winning 24 of them, AIADMK six, and the BJP and PMK one each. 

DMK wins 22 seats in the Tirunelveli corporation, AIADMK gets two, MDMK receives one, and an independent gets one.

Lakshmi, a DMK candidate, wins ward 39 of Coimbatore corporation by over 1,900 votes. In the Nilgiris’ Kotagiri town panchayat, BJP candidate Monisha wins ward 3. In around 30 communities in Chennai Corporation, the BJP has surpassed the AIADMK and taken second place. 

Parvez and Saithani, both Vijay Makkal Iyakkam, were elected in wards 4 and 21 of the Pudukkottai municipality in Villupuram district, respectively. The DMK has won 17 seats in the Trichy corporation thus far.

The Congress has gained three seats, with the MDMK winning two, the ADMK one, and the AMMK one. DMK candidate Nilavarasi Durairaj has won ward 136 in Chennai. Nilavarasi, who is 22 years old, is the youngest candidate in the race.

Outside the DMK’s Chennai headquarters, cadres rejoice. The DMK-led alliance takes control of Virudhunagar municipality for the first time. DMK wins 20 of the 36 wards, Congress wins 8, and AIADMK wins three. 

In the town panchayat elections, DMK candidates won 353 seats while AIADMK candidates got only 91 seats.

The DMK has won 57 of the state’s 1,374 corporate wards so far, while the major opposition AIADMK has won seven and others have won eight. Sivagami Arivazhagan, a DMK candidate, wins Ward 23 of Edappadi Municipality. The residence of Tamil Nadu’s ex-CM and opposition leader Edappadi Palaniswami is located here. 

The DMK is leading in all 21 municipal corporations, as well as practically all municipalities and town panchayats, according to the state electoral commission.

In the urban local body polls, Tamil Nadu received 61 percent of the vote, electing more than 12,500 members to the 640 urban local councils. The district of Chennai, on the other hand, had the lowest rate at 43.9 percent. 

In the Vellore Corporation region, the DMK won 14 wards, AIADMK won four, PMK won four, AMMK won one, and independent candidates won one.

TTV Dhinakaran’s AMMK has been elected to the Orathanadu town panchayat in Tanjore. DMK’s Transwoman Ganga wins ward 37 of Vellore Corporation.

As soon as a ward’s counting process is completed, the poll results will be announced over loudspeakers. 

On Saturday, elections were held in over 12,500 wards across 21 corporations, 138 municipalities, and 489 town panchayats. On Saturday, 60.7 percent of eligible voters cast ballots.

The State Election Commission ordered re-polling in seven polling booths across Chennai, Madurai, Ariyalur, and Tiruvannamalai districts on Monday after receiving complaints of booth capturing and other anomalies.  

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) won the Valparai municipal elections in Coimbatore on Tuesday. As soon as a ward’s counting process is completed, loudspeakers will announce the results.

Former AIADMK minister D Jayakumar was arrested at his home by Chennai police on Monday night for assaulting a DMK member during the urban local body elections in Washermanpet on Saturday.

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Edited by: Mahi Gupta

Published by: Vishakha Verma