Kerala Assembly Elections 2026: Malampuzha poised for LDF-BJP rematch, UDF takes desperate gamble
The Hindu
Kerala's Malampuzha Assembly seat sees LDF-BJP rematch as UDF fields A. Suresh in a high-stakes 2026 election battle.
Malampuzha has never elected a non-communist to the Assembly. Long seen as a Left bastion, it has sent stalwarts such as E.K. Nayanar, T. Sivadasa Menon and V.S. Achuthanandan to the Assembly. But now the constituency is drawing attention because the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is making visible inroads.
The BJP’s recent win in Akathethara grama panchayat, one of the eight local bodies in the constituency, marks a breakthrough. Even so, the Left Democratic Front (LDF) continues to dominate, retaining control of the remaining panchayats—Elapully, Kodumbu, Malampuzha, Marutharode, Mundur and Puthupariyaram.
BJP State vice-president C. Krishnakumar is contesting in Malampuzha for the third consecutive time. He has focussed on the constituency since his 2016 defeat to Achuthanandan by 27,142 votes. That year, he secured 28.9% of the vote, pushing the United Democratic Front (UDF) to third place, a position it is yet to recover from. In 2021, he raised his vote share to 30.68% but lost to the LDF’s A. Prabhakaran, who is seeking re-election this time.
Despite remaining the BJP’s key figure in the constituency, Mr. Krishnakumar’s back-to-back losses in the 2024 Lok Sabha election and the subsequent Palakkad Assembly byelection have weakened his political standing.
This time, Malampuzha will witness a rematch between Mr. Krishnakumar and Mr. Prabhakaran. Adding intrigue is the UDF’s choice of A. Suresh, former personal assistant to Achuthanandan, as its candidate.
The UDF, whose vote share fell to 21.66% in the previous Assembly election, appears to be making a desperate bid with Mr. Suresh. Though associated with Achuthanandan, who represented Malampuzha four times, Mr. Suresh’s influence in the constituency seems tenuous. The UDF is banking on residual support from Achuthanandan’s followers, but political observers remain unconvinced about the strategy.
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