Kannur: In a dramatic turnaround, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has successfully retained his seat in Dharmadam, securing a victory with a final margin of over 19,000 votes.
Despite an initial surge by the UDF candidate, V P Abdul Rasheed, which saw the Chief Minister trailing for the first six rounds, the CPM leader staged a powerful comeback in the latter half of the counting process.
The contest began with a shock for the LDF as Abdul Rasheed built a steady lead, reaching as high as 2,812 votes by the fourth round and maintaining dominance even in traditional CPM strongholds. However, as the counting moved into the seventh round and beyond, the tide turned decisively in favour of the Chief Minister.
By the final round, Vijayan had not only wiped out the deficit but established a commanding lead to ensure his third consecutive term from the constituency.
While Pinarayi Vijayan has held his ground, the broader state-wide results show a massive wave for the UDF, with the Congress-led front crossing the 100-seat mark in the 140-member Kerala Assembly.
The numbers game: 2026 Vs 2021
| Category | 2021 Election | 2026 Election (Current) |
| Polling Percentage | 80.22% | ~78.5% (Provisional) |
| Winning Candidate | Pinarayi Vijayan (CPM) | Pinarayi Vijayan (CPM) |
| Main Opponent | C Raghunathan (INC) | V P Abdul Rasheed (INC) |
| NDA Candidate | C K Padmanabhan (BJP) | K Ranjith (BJP) |
| Winning Margin | 50,123 votes | over 19,000 |