How close contests impacted victory margins in past Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu

While Tamil Nadu is heading for a four-cornered contest in the upcoming Assembly elections, it would be interesting to see how the state has witnessed intense contests in the past. An analysis of the results of Assembly elections in the State since 1967, shows there have been occasions where candidates lost by fewer than 25 votes.

1967

The 1967 Madras Legislative Assembly election was historic in many aspects. The DMK captured power for the first time, defeating the Congress, and C.N. Annadurai became the Chief Minister. The State was later renamed Tamil Nadu.

Significantly, less than 1,000 votes decided the outcome in 17 Assembly segments in this election. In the Vanur Assembly segment, a constituency reserved for Scheduled Castes, Balakrishnan of the DMK defeated Velayudham of the Congress by a margin of 70 votes.

1971 

The 1971 Tamil Nadu Assembly election was fought against the backdrop of the 1969 split in the Congress, which led to the formation of Congress (O) by former Chief Minister K. Kamaraj. Both Prime Minister Indira Gandhi of Congress (R) at the Centre and Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi in the State called for an early election.

By then, Karunanidhi had completed two years in power following the death of Annadurai in 1969. The election resulted in the DMK retaining power. However, in 11 Assembly segments the margin was less than 1,000 votes. In Sankarapuram in Villupuram district, DMK candidate N. Natchiyappan won by a margin of 72 votes against his nearest rival Duraimuthusamy of INC (O).

1977

The 1977 election was also historic. The ruling DMK had split, and veteran actor M.G. Ramachandran (MGR) floated the AIADMK in 1972. This was also the first election after the Emergency was lifted. Tt was a four-cornered contest between the DMK, AIADMK, Congress, and the Janata Party. The AIADMK won the election, and MGR became the Chief Minister.

A notable feature of this election was that 24 candidates were elected with margins of less than 1,000 votes. In Taramangalam in Salem district, S. Semmalai, who later became a key AIADMK leader and Health Minister, lost to R. Narayanan of the Congress by a margin of 19 votes. Similarly, in Thirumayam, now in Pudukkottai district, N. Sundararaj of the Congress defeated P. Ponnambalam of the AIADMK by 57 votes.

1980

In the 1980 Lok Sabha election, held after the fall of the Janata Party government led by Charan Singh, the DMK had aligned with the Congress, while the AIADMK had allied with the Janata Party. The Congress returned to power at the Centre, and Indira Gandhi became Prime Minister.

Following this, the Centre dismissed the M.G. Ramachandran government in the State, though it had two years remaining in its term. Assembly elections were held the same year, and the AIADMK retained power.

In this election too, the victory margin in 24 seats was less than 1,000. In the Ilayankudi Assembly segment, CPI candidate S. Sivasamy, then an AIADMK ally, narrowly defeated V. Malaikkannan of the DMK by 56 votes. In Sathyamangalam, R. Rangasamy of the AIADMK defeated C.R. Rasappa of the Congress by 60 votes. In Thiruvonam in Thanjavur district, Durai Govindarajan of the AIADMK lost to N. Sivagnanam of the Congress by 62 votes.

1984

The year 1984 was politically turbulent for both India and Tamil Nadu. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated, and her son Rajiv Gandhi, who succeeded her, dissolved the Lok Sabha to seek a fresh mandate. In Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran, who was undergoing treatment in Chennai and later in the United States, decided to face the electorate a year before his term ended. A strong sympathy wave helped the AIADMK-Congress alliance secure victory.

However, no candidate was elected with a margin of less than 100 votes. The mandate was decisive, with only three candidates winning with margins below 1,000 votes.

1989

The 1989 Assembly election was held after the death of M.G. Ramachandran in 1987, which led to a split in the AIADMK between the factions led by his wife Janaki Ramachandran and J. Jayalalithaa. In a four-cornered contest among the DMK, Congress, and the two AIADMK factions, the DMK returned to power after 13 years.

After being elected as DMK Assembly Leader, Dr. M. Karunanidhi along with other Ministers, paying homage and placing a wreath on Anna Samadhi on January 25, 1989.
| Photo Credit:
The Hindu

As many as 14 seats recorded margins between 200 and 1,000 votes.

1991

The 1991 Assembly election took place under highly volatile circumstances. The DMK government had earlier been dismissed by the Centre, and the campaign was overshadowed by the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in Sriperumbudur. A massive sympathy wave favoured the AIADMK-Congress alliance, which secured a landslide victory. Jayalalithaa became Chief Minister for the first time.

Given the sweeping mandate, only one Assembly segment recorded a margin of less than 1,000 votes. DMK president M. Karunanidhi won the Harbour constituency by 890 votes against K. Suppu of the Congress. The only other DMK winner was Parithi Ilamvazhuthi from Egmore, where polls were countermanded and held later.

1996

The 1996 election was shaped by a strong anti-incumbency wave against the AIADMK government amid widespread corruption allegations. The Congress high command’s decision to ally with the AIADMK triggered a split in the State unit, leading to the formation of the Tamil Maanila Congress under G.K. Moopanar.

The DMK formed a broad alliance with the TMC and Left parties and swept the polls. Karunanidhi became Chief Minister, while Jayalalithaa lost in Bargur. Reflecting the decisive mandate, six seats were won with margins of less than 1,000 votes, but none less than 200.

2001 

The 2001 election witnessed major political realignments. The AIADMK stitched together a broad alliance including the Congress, TMC, PMK, and Left parties, while the DMK aligned with the BJP, then in power at the Centre. The AIADMK-led alliance secured a comfortable majority. Though Jayalalithaa was initially barred from contesting, she was sworn in as Chief Minister, later stepping aside for O. Panneerselvam before returning after her acquittal.

In Nellikuppam, E. Pugazhendi of the DMK defeated P.R.S. Venkatesan of the TMC by just 34 votes. In Egmore, Parithi Ilamvazhuthi of the DMK defeated B. John Pandian, contesting on an AIADMK ticket, by 86 votes. A total nine seats were won by less than 1,000 votes margin.

2006

The 2006 election was closely fought. The DMK allied with the Congress, PMK, and Left parties, while the AIADMK aligned mainly with the MDMK. The DMK emerged as the single largest party but fell short of a majority. With outside support, Karunanidhi formed the government.

As many as 17 candidates were elected with margins below 1,000 votes. In Singanallur, R. Chinnasamy of the AIADMK defeated A. Soundararajan of the CPI (M) by just 14 votes. In Madurai East, N. Nanmaran of CPI (M) defeated M. Boominathan of the MDMK by 51 votes. Interestingly in Anicut, Pongalur, and Thottiam constituencies, the AIADMK, DMK and Congress nominees respectively won by 53 votes.

2011

The 2011 election was influenced by corruption allegations at the Centre in which the DMK was part of and widespread power shortages in the State, fuelling anti-incumbency against the DMK. The AIADMK formed a broad alliance that included the DMDK led by actor Vijayakant and the Left parties. The alliance secured a sweeping victory, with Jayalalithaa returning as Chief Minister and Vijayakant becoming Leader of the Opposition.

Eight Assembly seats recorded victory margins of less than 1,000 votes.

2016

The 2016 election broke a three-decade trend, as a ruling party retained power for the first time since 1980. The contest was multi-cornered, involving the AIADMK, the DMK-Congress alliance, the People’s Welfare Front comprising VCK, Left Parties, DMDK and TMC (M), while the PMK contested alone. Jayalalithaa chose to field AIADMK candidates in all 234 constituencies and secured a consecutive term.

Sixteen candidates were elected with margins below 1,000 votes. In Radhapuram, DMK’s M. Appavu, who later became the Speaker of the Assembly by winning this seat in the next election, lost to AIADMK’s I.S. Inbadurai by 49 votes. In Kattumannarkoil, VCK leader Thol. Thirumavalavan, contesting as part of the People’s Welfare Front, lost by 87 votes.

2021

The 2021 election marked a new phase in Tamil Nadu politics, as it was the first Assembly election after the deaths of Karunanidhi and Jayalalithaa. The DMK-led alliance, comprising the Congress, Left parties, and VCK, capitalised on anti-incumbency against the AIADMK government, which was then headed by Edappadi.K. Palaniswami. The AIADMK, allied with the BJP and PMK, was defeated, and M.K. Stalin became Chief Minister for the first time. In this election, eight candidates were elected with margins of less than 1,000 votes.