Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections: 7 key candidates and their constituencies in 2026 polls

Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections 2026: Tamil Nadu heads to the polls on 23 April 2026 for a single-phase Assembly election across all 234 constituencies, with results due on 4 May. The contest is set to be a three-cornered fight between the DMK-led alliance, the AIADMK-anchored NDA, and actor Vijay's fledgling TVK party.

The stage is all set across Tamil Nadu as the state braces for a high-stakes Assembly election on 23 April, with counting of votes scheduled for 4 May. Voters across all 234 constituencies will cast their ballots in a single phase, with roughly 5.67 crore registered electors set to decide who governs the state when the current Assembly's term expires on 10 May 2026.

Of the 234 seats, 44 are reserved for Scheduled Castes and two for Scheduled Tribes.

The contest is widely expected to come down to two dominant fronts. On one side stands the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance, buoyed by its 2021 majority, with the Congress lending support at the national level. Opposing them is the National Democratic Alliance, anchored in Tamil Nadu by the AIADMK, with the BJP fighting alongside. Then there is a third force, actor-turned-politician Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), launched as recently as February 2024, which has fielded candidates across all 234 seats and is widely expected to draw heavily from younger voters.

In all, over 4,000 candidates are contesting.

Also read: West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026: 7 key candidates and constituencies in first phase of voting

How 2021 set the stage

The last Assembly election saw the DMK sweep back to power after a decade in the wilderness, winning 133 seats with a 37.7 per cent vote share. The AIADMK, for all its incumbency, was reduced to 66 seats. The Congress took 18, the PMK five, and the BJP and VCK four apiece. Parties such as MNM, AMMK and DMDK failed to open their accounts despite modest vote shares, a reminder that Tamil Nadu's electorate can be unsparing.

The candidates to watch

M K Stalin and Udhayanidhi Stalin (DMK): The chief minister is defending his Kolathur seat, a constituency he has held since 2011. His son and deputy chief minister, Udhayanidhi Stalin, is contesting from Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni, which he won in 2021 and is now looking to hold once more.

Vijay (TVK): In a bold move for a party barely two years old, Vijay is standing from not one but two constituencies, Tiruchirapalli East and Perambur, in what amounts to a personal test of his political drawing power.

Edappadi K Palaniswami (AIADMK): The AIADMK general secretary and the NDA's pick for chief minister is seeking a fourth consecutive term from Edappadi, his home constituency, which he has held without interruption since 2011. He remains the most recognisable face of the opposition.

Also Read: Bengal Elections: How TMC plans to wrest Nandigram from BJP and Suvendu Adhikari - 4-point strategy revealed

O Panneerselvam (DMK): One of the more dramatic stories of this election cycle, the former chief minister and long-time Jayalalithaa loyalist has crossed the floor to the DMK ahead of the polls. Stalin's party has placed him in Bodinayakkanur, a seat Panneerselvam won three times running, in 2011, 2016 and 2021, under the AIADMK banner. Whether that loyalty travels with him will be one of the election's more intriguing subplots.

Tamilisai Soundararajan (BJP): A former president of the BJP's Tamil Nadu unit and ex-Governor of Telangana, Soundararajan is standing from Mylapore. She also previously served as Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, giving her a profile that stretches well beyond state politics.

Nainar Nagendran (BJP): The BJP's Tamil Nadu chief has shifted from Tirunelveli, which he won in 2021, to contest this time from Sattur, a switch that will be closely watched as a gauge of the party's confidence in new ground.