The simmering differences over seat-sharing in central Travancore notwithstanding, the United Democratic Front (UDF) has already swung into action to identify potential candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections.
Sources said the coalition has already begun the process of finalising its panel of candidates in Kottayam to coincide with the arrival of the Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan’s rally in the district. “As of now, we are working towards presenting candidates during the rally on February 24,” a leader confirmed.
Despite clear directions from the central leadership that winnability alone should guide candidate selection, intense lobbying involving attempts to rope in community organisations is also on for some seats like Changanassery and Ettumanur.
Parallelly, directions have been issued to strengthen the Front’s grassroots presence by actively participating in gram sabhas of local bodies and presenting development proposals. This will be followed by ward-level meetings aimed at consolidating the organisation at the local level.
“The UDF is looking to ride the momentum it has built since the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, followed by the local body polls. During the Lok Sabha elections, the LDF managed to secure a majority in the district only in the Vaikom Assembly segment. Even in the local body elections, the LDF enjoyed an overall vote advantage only in Vaikom,” said a senior Congress leader.
According to him, there is no confusion whatsoever over sitting UDF legislators in the district seeking re-election. At present, the UDF holds only the Kottayam, Kaduthuruthy, Pala and Puthuppally Assembly constituencies in the district.
He also confirmed that there is a growing demand within the Congress to retain the Changanassery and Ettumanur seats, while allotting Poonjar to the Kerala Congress. “The Joseph faction has not agreed to this proposal so far. While this difference may be ironed out during state-level discussions, the UDF in Kottayam has decided to focus on identifying candidates with strong public backing in a bid to reclaim seats lost in the previous election,” he added.
Published – February 03, 2026 09:11 pm IST
