New chapter in Tamil Nadu's revolving-door politics as Vijay's TVK complicates DMK-AIADMK math

Tamil Nadu has held two state elections since it lost, within two years, the leaders who shaped its politics for half a century. J. Jayalalithaa of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam died in office on December 5, 2016. M. Karunanidhi of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam passed away on August 7, 2018. As the state prepares to vote again on April 23, the electoral record of the decade since shows how the two parties have travelled in opposite directions.

The numbers from the last two electoral cycles tell a stark story.

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In the 2016 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election, conducted in May 2016, the AIADMK under Jayalalithaa won 135 of 234 seats, becoming the first ruling party in the state to win back-to-back elections since 1984. On May 23, 2016, she was sworn in as Chief Minister for a sixth term. Within months, she was hospitalised. She died on December 5, 2016, in office.

What followed was a period of contested succession. After Jayalalithaa's death, the party was led first by O. Panneerselvam as Chief Minister, followed by Edappadi K. Palaniswami from February 2017. The party transitioned to dual coordinatorship before Palaniswami was elected General Secretary at a general council in July 2022. That transition, and the internal disputes it generated including legal challenges to party by-law changes, played out through the 2021 Assembly election.

2021: DMK's sweep, AIADMK's slide

The April 6, 2021 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election ended a decade of AIADMK rule. The DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance won 159 of 234 seats, with the DMK itself winning 133 constituencies, securing an absolute majority for the first time in 25 years. The AIADMK-led National Democratic Alliance won 75 seats, with the AIADMK winning 66. M.K. Stalin was sworn in as Chief Minister on May 7, 2021.

It was the first assembly election in Tamil Nadu after the deaths of Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi.

The DMK's margin was broad-based. In northern Tamil Nadu, the alliance swept all constituencies in Chennai, Thiruvallur and Kanchipuram districts, winning 64 of the region's 78 seats. In central Tamil Nadu's Kaveri delta region, the AIADMK-led alliance won only four of 41 seats.

2024 Lok Sabha polls: Clean sweep for DMK, a blank for AIADMK

The 2024 general election, held on April 19, 2024, extended the pattern. The DMK-led Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance won all 39 parliamentary seats in Tamil Nadu. The AIADMK, which had withdrawn from the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance in September 2023 and contested under a separate alliance, failed to win a single seat, including Theni, the one constituency it had held in 2019.

Heading into 2026 state polls: The contestants and their positions

The Election Commission of India announced the schedule for the 2026 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election on March 15, 2026. Polling is scheduled for April 23 across all 234 constituencies, with counting on May 4. According to the ECI's Special Intensive Revision, 56,707,380 voters are eligible to cast ballots, 27,738,925 male and 28,960,838 female.

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The AIADMK has fielded Palaniswami as its chief ministerial candidate. The party rejoined the BJP-led NDA on April 11, 2025, with the PMK formally entering the alliance on January 7, 2026. The party's manifesto, released March 24, 2026, carries 297 promises, including a monthly assistance of Rs 2,000 for women and a Rs 10,000 per-family relief payment.

The DMK contests as the incumbent, with its alliance; Congress, CPI(M), CPI, MDMK and VCK, intact from the 2024 Lok Sabha election. The party released its candidate list on March 28, 2026.

A new entrant complicates the arithmetic. Actor-turned-politician Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, formed on February 2, 2024, announced on March 18, 2026 that it would contest all 234 constituencies as a solo entrant, releasing its full candidate list on March 30. Votes will be counted on May 4.