Kerala: UDF bags wafer-thin victory

As the counting for the 140-seat Assembly concluded on Friday, neck-to-neck race finally tilted in favour of the UDF that took home 72 seats, up 31 from last time, while leaving 68 for the Left, down 24.

Achuthanandan, 87, himself defeated Congress' Lathika Subash to retain the Malampuzha segment in Palakkad district even as Kerala lived up to its reputation of alternating between two of the major alliances in the state.

Meanwhile, Congress leader and UDF's top candiate for the Chief Minister’s seat Oommen Chandy won from Puthupally for the ninth consecutive time, as the coalition just crossed the majority mark of 71.

But even in the LDF’s loss, the CPI-M emerged as the largest part with 45 seats, while the UDF’s principal part Congress could only manage 38 in what was the thinnest majority to either of coalitions that alternatively ruled Kerala for the last three decades.

Votes for the 140-seat Assembly were cast exactly a month ago, in a bitterly-fought election that saw relentless attacks by both sides on eachother in a state that holds the tradition of alternating between the two major alliances.

Major face-offs included one between Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan and Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi, as both the leaders attacked each other over their age. While Gandhi said the CM was getting too old, Achuthanandan hit back, calling him “Amul Baby”.

Exit polls had concluded a too-close-to-call image, with far less polarised results than the West Bengal elections but a general lean towards the UDF. However, surveys of LDF’s approval ratings swayed some estimates to the Left’s favour.

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