Key Highlights
- Clean sweep: TVK won both Madurantakam and Dharapuram bypolls.
- Margins: Maragatham Kumaravel won by 17,554 votes; Sathyabama by 10,196.
- Big fall: AIADMK, which had won both seats earlier this year, finished third in both.
- Turnout: 86.26% in Madurantakam, 80.30% in Dharapuram.
- Tally: TVK’s strength in the 234-member Assembly rises from 108 to 110.
The ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) has won both Assembly bypolls in Tamil Nadu, the first electoral test for Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s government. Maragatham Kumaravel won Madurantakam and Sathyabama won Dharapuram, defeating DMK rivals in both seats.
Ministers called the result an endorsement of the government’s four months in office, as party workers celebrated across both constituencies.
The Results
Madurantakam (Turnout: 86.26%)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Vote share* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maragatham Kumaravel | TVK | 61,470 | ~33% |
| Paranthaman | DMK | 43,916 | ~24% |
| Ganitha Sampath | AIADMK | 38,770 | ~21% |
| Janakiraman | NTK | 1,703 | – |
| Sugandhi | CPI(M) | 1,441 | – |
Dharapuram (Turnout: 80.30%)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Vote share* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sathyabama | TVK | 62,596 | ~35% |
| Sukanya | DMK | 52,400 | ~29% |
| Bhanumathi | AIADMK | 41,078 | ~23% |
| Karthika | NTK | 4,954 | – |
| Lakshmanan | CPI | 1,099 | – |
Calculated from votes polled.
Why It Matters: Voters Backed the Candidates, Not the Old Party
Both winners had won these same seats earlier this year on AIADMK tickets, before resigning and joining TVK. Voters re-elected them under their new party, while the AIADMK, which held both seats, fell to third place in each.
The shift is sharpest in Madurantakam. Earlier this year, Kumaravel beat the TVK candidate there by 7,194 votes as an AIADMK nominee. This time, as TVK’s candidate, she won by 17,554 votes.
Dharapuram tells a slightly different story. Sathyabama’s margin narrowed from 16,727 earlier this year to 10,196, as the DMK put up a stronger fight.
The vote shares also show a fragmented contest. With multiple parties in the race, TVK won both seats with roughly a third of the votes, enough to win in a five-cornered fight.
The Assembly Arithmetic
TVK won 108 seats in the Assembly election, short of the 118 needed for a majority on its own. The two wins take its tally to 110. The majority arithmetic does not change, but the result strengthens the party’s position and its claim of public support.
The Bottom Line
TVK has passed its first electoral test, and the AIADMK has lost both seats it won just months ago. For the DMK, a strong second place in both seats offers some comfort, but not the wins it needed.
With inputs from IANS.