The results of the urban local bodies elections from 12,463 wards across Tamil Nadu have thrown up no surprise as the ruling DMK and its allies have registered a thumping victory.
Given the feature that has been in vogue since 1996 when the local bodies elections were held under the 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments, it was an open secret from the beginning that aided by arithmetic strength, the DMK-led front had an advantage over others, including the main Opposition AIADMK and the BJP. Besides, the coalition that the AIADMK had stitched for the Assembly election in April-May 2021 had disintegrated with the BJP and the PMK going it alone.
But what is striking this time, compared with the Assembly election results nine months ago, is that the DMK-led combine has been able to increase its strike rate — from about 67% of the seats to over 80% of the wards. For the Assembly election, a one-to-one comparison between the DMK and the AIADMK would reveal that the ratio between the DMK and the AIADMK was 2:1, which meant that for every two seats won by the DMK, the AIADMK could bag only one seat. But in the local bodies elections (according to the results released till 8. 30 p.m. on Tuesday), the gap has grown wider as the ratio is roughly 5.8:1 in the municipal corporations; 3.7:1 in the municipalities; and 3.6:1 in the town panchayats.
“A huge wave has swept across the State in favour of us. It is all due to the confidence reposed by people in the leadership of the Chief Minister [M.K. Stalin],” says Thangam Thennarasu, Industries Minister and one of the key leaders of the DMK in southern districts. He does not seem to be surprised by the scale of victory and points out that public mood could be gauged at the time of the campaign.
S. Thirunavukkarasar, Tiruchi MP and a leader of the Congress, an ally of the DMK, points to a combination of factors such as the strength of the coalition and Mr. Stalin’s leadership. “The kind of success that our alliance has got is more than expected.”
An academic says the qualitative difference between the results of the two elections is the DMK’s resounding success in the Kongu region or the western belt. “After it came to power again, the party has been paying special attention to the region. It remains to be seen whether the DMK sustains it in future,” he observes.
Two senior AIADMK leaders feel there is nothing to feel surprised about the results as voters tend to support the ruling party in the local bodies elections. “Today’s results are similar to what our party accomplished in the 2011 local bodies elections,” they say. One of the leaders is of the view that religious minorities have not come back to the AIADMK’s fold, though the BJP is no longer a partner.
The BJP appears to have been more satisfied with the experience it has gained than the eventual outcome. T. Narayanan, its spokesperson, says, “Contesting alone, we have won some town panchayats. At some places in Chennai, we finished second. So, this will motivate us to work further and more intensely.”
K.S. Narendran, vice-president of the party, says he could sense a “great deal” of enthusiasm among the cadre after the party decided to go it alone. “Our candidates were able to reach larger sections in a quick time than what would have happened otherwise.”
The AMMK, led by former MP T.T.V. Dhinakaran, has put up a modest performance. Apart from securing three wards in municipal corporations; 33 in municipalities; and 66 in town panchayats, what is significant for the party is that its nominees have captured a majority of the seats in the Orathanadu town panchayat council.
The overall message delivered by the results is that the factor of arithmetic strength works at the local bodies, too.
