A major political change took place in Thiruvananthapuram, where the BJP-led NDA took control of the city corporation. This ended the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front’s rule, which had lasted for 45 years.
BJP leader V.V. Rajesh has been elected as the Mayor of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, ending the LDF’s long control over the city. The BJP won 50 seats, taking charge of the corporation and breaking the Left’s dominance in the state capital that had continued for nearly 40 years. The Congress-led UDF also improved its position by doubling its number of seats.
Rajesh received votes from all 50 BJP councillors and support from one independent member. The UDF’s candidate, K.S. Sabarinadhan, got 17 votes, while the LDF’s mayoral candidate, R.P. Shivaji, secured 29 votes.
Rajesh’s name was proposed by M.R. Gopan, while V.G. Girikumar withdrew from the race. Two votes from Congress councillors were declared invalid because of a mistake in signing. These votes belonged to K.R. Cletus, the senior-most member of the council, and Lathika.
The turning point came late on Thursday night when the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) received support from independent councillor P. Radhakrishnan. This took the NDA’s strength from 50 to 51 seats, giving it a clear majority in the 101-member corporation.
In total, 97 valid votes were counted during the election.
The 2025 Kerala local body elections, held in two phases on December 9 and 11, saw the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) win in most rural and urban local bodies across the state.
A major political change took place in Thiruvananthapuram, where the BJP-led NDA took control of the city corporation. This ended the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front’s rule, which had lasted for 45 years.
In the December 9 local body elections, the BJP surprised many by winning 50 out of the 100 wards that went to the polls. This victory ended nearly 45 years of CPI(M) control over the Thiruvananthapuram civic body.
The Left Democratic Front (LDF) was reduced to 29 seats, while the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) won 19 seats.
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