2019 Kerala Legislative Assembly by-elections

Six assembly by-elections were held on 23 September and 21 October 2019, to the six vacant seats in the Kerala Niyamasabha which consists of 140 constituencies in total.

2019 Kerala Legislative Assembly by-elections

← 2016 23 September 2019 (1 seat) 21 October 2019 (5 seats) 2023 →
Manjeshwar, Ernakulam, Pala, Aroor, Konni and Vattiyoorkavu Niyamasabha constituencies
Turnout	70.11%
First party Second party   Leader Pinarayi Vijayan Ramesh Chennithala Party CPI(M) INC Alliance   LDF   UDF Leader's seat Dharmadom Haripad Last election 01 05 Seats won 03 03 Seat change 02 02 Popular vote 302,717 308,359 Percentage 37.97% 38.68% Swing 1.53% 1.78%
Chief Minister before election Pinarayi Vijayan CPI(M) Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan CPI(M)

By-election took place in two phases. The first phase was conducted on 23 September for Pala Constituency.^[1] The remaining 5 assembly constituencies (Manjeshwar, Ernakulam, Aroor, Konni and Vattiyoorkavu) voted to elect their representatives on 21 October.^[2] The counting of votes was conducted on 27 September in Pala and on 24 October in the other five constituencies.

Schedule for the by-elections

Pala

The first phase by-election was held for the Pala Constituency in Kerala.^[3]

By-Election Event	Day	Date
Election Declaration	Sunday	25/08/2019
Issue of Gazette Notification	Wednesday	28/08/2019
Last date of filing Nomination	Wednesday	04/09/2019
Scrutiny of Nominations	Thursday	05/09/2019
Last date of withdrawal of candidatures	Saturday	07/09/2019
Polling	Monday	23/09/2019
Counting of votes	Friday	27/09/2019

Manjeshwaram, Ernakulam, Aroor, Konni and Vattiyoorkavu

The second phase by-elections were held for the remaining 5 vacant assembly constituencies in Kerala.^[4]

By-Election Event	Day	Date
Election Declaration	Saturday	21/09/2019
Issue of Gazette Notification	Monday	23/09/2019
Last date of filing Nomination	Monday	30/09/2019
Scrutiny of Nominations	Tuesday	01/10/2019
Last date of withdrawal of candidatures	Thursday	03/10/2019
Polling	Monday	21/10/2019
Counting of votes	Thursday	24/10/2019

Electorates

There were 11,36,616 electorates from the 6 niyamasabha constituencies where the by-elections were held. Constituency wise details are given below:

Number	Constituency	Electorates
1	Manjeshwar	2,14,779
82	Ernakulam	1,55,306
93	Pala	1,79,107
102	Aroor	1,91,898
114	Konni	1,97,956
133	Vattiyoorkavu	1,97,570

Alliances and parties

There are two major political coalitions in Kerala. The United Democratic Front (UDF) is the coalition of centrist and center-left parties led by the Indian National Congress. The Left Democratic Front (LDF) is the coalition of left-wing and far-left parties, led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)).

  LDF

They are a coalition of left-wing political parties in Kerala. It is one of the two major political coalitions in the state, the other being the UDF, both of which has been in power alternatively for the last two decades. After winning a majority of the seats in the Niyamasabha elections, they are currently in power. The coalition consists of CPI(M), CPI and a variety of other smaller parties. LDF fields four CPI(M) candidates, an NCP candidate and an independent to fight in the by-poll.

No.	Party	Flag	Symbol	Photo	Leader	Seats contested	Male	Female
1.	Communist Party of India (Marxist)				Kodiyeri Balakrishnan	Manjeshwaram Aroor, Konni, Vattiyoorkavu	4	0
2.	Nationalist Congress Party					Pala	1	0
3.	LDF Independent				A. Vijayaraghavan	Ernakulam	1	0

  UDF

It is an alliance of central-wing political parties in the state, created by the prominent INC party leader K. Karunakaran in the 1970s. UDF fielded four INC candidates, an IUML candidate and an independent for the vacant constituencies.

No.	Party	Flag	Symbol	Photo	Leader	Seats contested	Male	Female
1.	Indian National Congress				Mullappally Ramachandran	Ernakulam, Aroor, Konni Vattiyoorkavu	3	1
2.	Indian Union Muslim League				Sayed Hyderali Shihab Thangal	Manjeshwar	1	0
3.	UDF Independent				Benny Behanan	Pala	1	0

  NDA

It is a coalition of right-leaning political parties in India. NDA gave all the six seats for the BJP to contest.

No.	Party	Flag	Symbol	Photo	Leader	Seats contested	Male	Female
1.	Bharatiya Janata Party				P. S Sreedharan Pillai	Manjeshwar, Ernakulam, Pala, Aroor, Konni Vattiyoorkavu	6	0

Constituency-wise Candidates

The LDF fielded four CPI(M) candidates, an NCP candidate and an independent to win the seats. UDF fielded four INC candidates, an IUML candidate and an independent. NDA fielded six BJP candidates.

No.	Constituency	Candidates
		LDF   CPI(M) (4)   NCP (1)   Independent (1)		UDF   INC (4)   IUML (1)   Independent (1)		NDA   BJP (6)
1	Manjeshwar	M. Shankara Rai	CPI(M)	M. C. Kamaruddin	IUML	Raveesh Thanthri Kuntar	BJP
2	Ernakulam	Manu Roy	Independent	T. J. Vinod	INC	C. G. Rajagopal	BJP
3	Pala	Mani C. Kappan	NCP	Jose Tom Pulikunnel	Independent	N. Hari	BJP
4	Aroor	Manu C. Pulikkal	CPI(M)	Shanimol Usman	INC	K. P. Prakash Babu	BJP
5	Konni	K. U. Jenish Kumar	CPI(M)	P. Mohanraj	INC	K. Surendran	BJP
6	Vattiyoorkavu	V. K. Prasanth	CPI(M)	K. Mohankumar	INC	S. Suresh	BJP

Exit Polls

The Manorama News and the Mathrubhumi News published their exit poll predictions in the constituencies where the election was held on 21 October 2019. Asianet News had published their exit poll predictions for Pala, where the election was held earlier.

	Manorama - Karvy[5]			Mathrubhumi- Geowide India[6]			AZ Research - Asianet[7]
Constituencies
	LDF	UDF	NDA	LDF	UDF	NDA	LDF	UDF	NDA
Manjeshwar	31%	36%	31%	21%	40%	37%
Ernakulam	30%	55%	12%	39%	44%	15%
Pala							32%	48%	19%
Aroor	44%	43%	11%	44%	43%	11%
Konni	46%	41%	12%	39%	41%	19%
Vattiyoorkavu	36%	37%	26%	41%	37%	20%

Polling day

Polling took place on 23 September 2019 in Pala and on 21 October 2019 in the remaining five Niyamasabha constituencies.

Number	Constituency	Polling%
1	Manjeshwar	75.78
82	Ernakulam	57.90
93	Pala	70.97
102	Aroor	80.47
114	Konni	70.07
133	Vattiyoorkavu	62.66

Results in a glance

The results at a glance are given below:

By alliance

Both the LDF and the UDF won three seats each. The NDA could not win any seats.

	Alliance	Seats Contested	Seats Won	Seat Change	Vote %	Swing %
	UDF	06	03	02	38.68	1.78
	LDF	06	03	02	37.97	1.53
	NDA	06	00	00	21.63	0.09
Total		06

Party-wise

Each of the CPI(M) and the INC won in two seats. The remaining two seats were bagged by the NCP and the IUML respectively.

LDF		SEATS	UDF		SEATS	NDA		SEATS
CPI(M)		02	INC		02	BJP		00
NCP		01	IUML		01
LDF Independent		00	UDF Independent		00
Total		03	Total		03	Total		00
Change		02	Change		02	Change		00

By district

District	No. of constituencies	Winning party	Alliance
Kasaragod	01	IUML	UDF
Ernakulam	01	INC	UDF
Kottayam	01	NCP	LDF
Alappuzha	01	INC	UDF
Pathanamthitta	01	CPI(M)	LDF
Thiruvananthapuram	01	CPI(M)	LDF
Total	06

By constituency

No.	Constituency	LDF candidate	Party		Votes		UDF candidate	Party		Votes		NDA candidate	Party		Votes		Winner	Margin		Alliance
1	Manjeshwar	M. Shankara Rai	CPI(M)		38,233	23.49%	M. C. Kamaruddin	IUML		65,407	40.19%	Raveesh Thanthri Kuntar	BJP		57,484	35.32%	M. C. Kamaruddin	7,923	4.87%	UDF
82	Ernakulam	Manu Roy	LDF		34,141	37.96%	T. J. Vinod	INC		37,891	42.13%	C. G. Rajagopal	BJP		13,351	14.85%	T. J. Vinod	3,750	4.17%	UDF
93	Pala	Mani C. Kappan	NCP		54,137	42.55%	Jose Tom Pulikunnel	UDF		51,194	40.24%	N. Hari	BJP		18,044	14.18%	Mani C. Kappan	2,943	2.31%	LDF
102	Aroor	Manu C. Pulikkal	CPI(M)		67,277	43.54%	Shanimol Usman	INC		69,356	44.88%	K. P. Prakash Babu	BJP		16,289	10.54%	Shanimol Usman	2,079	1.34%	UDF
114	Konni	K. U. Jenish Kumar	CPI(M)		54,099	38.96%	P. Mohanraj	INC		44,140	31.79%	K. Surendran	BJP		39,786	28.65%	K. U. Jenish Kumar	9,953	7.17%	LDF
133	Vattiyoorkavu	V. K. Prasanth	CPI(M)		54,830	44.25%	K. Mohan Kumar	INC		40,365	32.58%	S. Suresh	BJP		27,453	22.16%	V. K. Prasanth	14,465	11.67%	LDF

Detailed results

1. Manjeshwar

2019 Kerala Legislative Assembly by-elections : Manjeshwar

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	IUML	M. C. Kamaruddin	65,407	40.19%	4.40
	BJP	Raveesh Thanthri Kuntar	57,484	35.32%	0.42
	CPI(M)	M. Shankara Rai	38,233	23.49%	3.30
	NOTA	None of the Above	574	0.35%	0.06
	Independent	Govindan B. Alinthazhe	337	0.21%	N/A
	Independent	John D. Souza	277	0.17%	0.04
	Independent	Rajesh B.	232	0.14%	N/A
	Independent	Kamarudheen M. C.	211	0.13%	N/A
Margin of victory			7,923	4.87%	4.82
Turnout			162,755	75.78%	0.55
	IUML hold		Swing	4.40

^[8]

82. Ernakulam

2019 Kerala Legislative Assembly by-elections : Ernakulam

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	INC	T. J. Vinod	37,891	42.13%	10.19
	LDF	Manu Roy	34,141	37.96%	5.50
	BJP	C. G. Rajagopal	13,351	14.85%	1.39
	Independent	Manu K. M.	2,572	2.86%	N/A
	NOTA	None of the Above	1,309	1.46%	0.61
	Independent	Vinod A. P.	206	0.23%	N/A
	SFB	Abdul Khader	175	0.19%	N/A
	Independent	Jaisen Thomas	116	0.13%	N/A
	Independent	Bosco Louis	93	0.10%	N/A
	Independent	Ashokan	78	0.09%	N/A
Margin of victory			3,750	4.17%	15.69
Turnout			89,932	57.91%	13.81
	INC hold		Swing	10.19

^[9]

93. Pala

2019 Kerala Legislative Assembly by-elections : Pala

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	NCP	Mani C. Kappan	54,137	42.55%
	UDF	Jose Tom Pulikkunnel	51,194	40.24%
	BJP	N. Hari	18,044	14.18%
	Independent	C. J. Philip	1,085	0.85%
	Independent	Maju Puthenkandam	1,012	0.80%
	NOTA	None of the Above	742	0.58%
	Independent	George Pooveli	565	0.44%
	Independent	Tom Thomas	303	0.24%
	Independent	Ignatious Illimoottil	233	0.18%
	Independent	Joseph Jacob	178	0.14%
	Independent	Babu Joseph	130	0.10%
	Independent	Joemon Joseph Srampickal	130	0.10%
	Independent	Joby Thomas	112	0.09%
	Independent	Sunilkumar	97	0.08%
Margin of victory			2,943	2.31%
Turnout			127,220	70.97%
	NCP gain from KC(M)		Swing

^[10]

102. Aroor

2019 Kerala Legislative Assembly by-elections : Aroor

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	INC	Shanimol Usman	69,356	44.88%	16.34
	CPI(M)	Manu C. Pulikkal	67,277	43.54%	8.80
	BJP	K. P. Prakash Babu	16,289	10.54%	N/A
	NOTA	None of the Above	840	0.54%	0.09
	Independent	Geetha Asokan	352	0.23%	N/A
	Independent	K. B. Sunil Kumar	278	0.18%	N/A
	Independent	Alleppy Sugunan	142	0.09%	N/A
Margin of victory			2,079	1.34%	22.46
Turnout			154,534	80.47%	5.36
	INC gain from CPI(M)		Swing	16.34

^[11]

114. Konni

2019 Kerala Legislative Assembly by-elections : Konni

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	CPI(M)	K. U. Jenish Kumar	54,099	38.96%	2.63
	INC	P. Mohanraj	44,146	31.79%	19.02
	BJP	K. Surendran	39,786	28.65%	16.99
	NOTA	None of the Above	469	0.34%	0.01
	Independent	Joemon Joseph Srampickal	235	0.17%	N/A
	Independent	Sivanandan	124	0.09%	N/A
Margin of victory			9,953	7.17%	7.31
Turnout			138,859	70.07%	2.92
	CPI(M) gain from INC		Swing	2.63

^[12]

133. Vattiyoorkavu

2019 Kerala Legislative Assembly by-elections: Vattiyoorkavu

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	CPI(M)	V. K. Prasanth	54,830	44.25%	14.46
	INC	K. Mohankumar	40,365	32.58%	5.23
	BJP	S. Suresh	27,453	22.16%	10.03
	NOTA	None of the Above	820	0.66%	0.06
	Independent	A.Mohanakumar	135	0.11%	N/A
	Independent	Nagaraj G.	100	0.08%	N/A
	Independent	Suresh S. S.	93	0.08%	N/A
	Independent	Murukan A.	76	0.06%	N/A
	Independent	Mithran G.	38	0.03%	N/A
Majority			14,465	11.67%	6.06
Turnout			123,910	62.66%	7.17
	CPI(M) gain from INC		Swing	14.46

^[13]

List of the newly elected MLAs to the 14th Kerala Niyamasabha

As a result of the 2019 Kerala Legislative Assembly by-elections, six new members were elected to the Kerala Niyamasabha.

Constituency	Member		Party	Alliance
Manjeshwar	M. C. Kamaruddin		IUML	UDF
Ernakulam	T. J. Vinod		INC	UDF
Pala	Mani C. Kappan		NCP	LDF
Aroor	Shanimol Usman		INC	UDF
Konni	K. U. Jenish Kumar		CPI(M)	LDF
Vattiyoorkavu	V. K. Prasanth		CPI(M)	LDF

Assembly seat share post by-elections

After the 2019 Kerala Legislative Assembly by-elections, the composition of 14th Kerala Legislative Assembly changed as per given below:

UDF	LDF	NDA
45	93	2

The Kerala Niyamasabha is composed of 141 seats (140 elected and 1 nominated). After the by-elections, the Government of Kerala has the support of 93 members.

Total (141)

Government (93)

• LDF (93)
  •   CPI(M) (60)
  •   CPI (19)
  •   JD(S) (3)
  •   NCP (3)
  •   C(S) (1)
  •   KC(B) (1)
  •   NSC (1)
  •   IND (5)

Opposition (47)

• UDF (45)
  •   INC (21)
  •   IUML (18)
  •   KC(M) (5)
  •   KC(J) (1)
• NDA (2)
  •   BJP (1)
  •   KJ(S) (1)
• Others(1)
  •   Nominated (1)

See also

• India portal

• 2016 Kerala Legislative Assembly election
• Kerala Legislative Assembly
• 2019 Indian general election in Kerala
• 2019 elections in India