Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief Vijay is leading by 1,669 votes in the Tiruchirappalli East Assembly constituency after the first round of counting in the Tamil Nadu assembly elections, which began on Monday.
Vijay, a former actor, is contesting from both Tiruchirappalli East and Perambur seats, with significant emphasis on today’s results due to his party’s political debut in Tamil Nadu. TVK is contesting the elections independently, opposing the NDA alliance led by AIADMK and BJP, while the DMK-led alliance, supported by Congress, aims to retain power in the state.
Inigo Irudayaraj, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) candidate, trails behind in the initial round of counting according to early trends. Vijay’s entry has transformed the Tamil Nadu elections into a three-cornered contest, breaking the traditional dominance of DMK and AIADMK-led alliances. Notably, fifteen TVK candidates are currently leading in early counts, including G Ramamoorthi from Tiruchirappalli West, Senthil Kumar N from Srivaikuntam, Saravanan G from Thiruvottiyur, and Sathish Christopher from Radhapuram.
Party workers and supporters gathered early on Monday morning outside the TVK headquarters as counting of votes for all 234 assembly constituencies commenced at 8 am under tight security across Chennai. The counting started with postal ballots at 8 am, followed by Electronic Voting Machine counts from 8:30 am, with round-wise results available in real time on the ECINET platform and the Election Commission’s official portal.
Exit polls have suggested the DMK-led alliance is likely to retain power, supported by strong voter turnout and favorable projections. Tamil Nadu is among four states—alongside Assam, West Bengal, Kerala—and the Union Territory of Puducherry holding counting for polls conducted on April 23, although West Bengal held a second polling phase on April 29.
At the Queen Mary’s College counting centre, postal votes are also being counted. Early postal ballot leads indicate the DMK is ahead, with counts from locations including Chepauk Triplicane (DMK 21, AIADMK 7, TVK 6), Harbor (DMK 19, AIADMK 7, TVK 9), RK Nagar (DMK 22, AIADMK 7, TVK 11), Royapuram (DMK 10, AIADMK 7, TVK 6), and Thiruvikanagar (DMK 9, AIADMK 5, TVK 10).
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