The Left Democratic Front (LDF) had won the Kayamkulam Assembly seat in 2011 with a slender margin of 1,315 votes, down from the 5,832 margin with which it had defeated the United Democratic Front (UDF) in 2006. But the LDF strengthened its presence in the Lok Sabha elections in 2014 by securing a margin of 3,286 votes over its nearest UDF opponent. Between 1987 and 2006, the LDF and the UDF had been winning the seat alternately.
The CPI(M)-led LDF has announced the candidature of Pratibha Hari, a former Alappuzha district panchayat president, who has a popular image. There had been disagreement initially within the party over the choice of another candidate while a section of the party wanted one more chance to be given to sitting MLA C.K. Sadasivan of the CPI(M).
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) polled only 3,083 votes in 2011, but it more than doubled its strength in the 2014 Lok Sabha election. The BJP-BDJS combine may be able to change the course of the election. Merchants and fishermen have a significant presence in the constituency. In the delimitation process in 2011, Muthukulam grama panchayat got detached from Kayamkulam while Bharanikkavu and Chettikulangara grama panchayats were added to the constituency.
