The much-anticipated announcement of the Kerala local body elections will be made today. State Election Commissioner A. Shajahan is set to announce the election schedule at a press conference scheduled for 12 noon. All preparations for the polls have been completed by the State Election Commission.
According to early indications, voting is likely to be held in two phases between December 5 and December 15, with counting expected to be completed before December 20. With the official announcement imminent, political fronts have accelerated their seat-sharing talks and candidate selection. The UDF has already announced candidates in several local bodies, while the LDF, which currently holds a majority of the local bodies, aims to maintain its dominance to ensure continuity in governance. The UDF, on the other hand, seeks to make gains in this election to build confidence ahead of the next Assembly elections.
The final voters’ list was published on October 25, and after considering applications for additions over the following two days, the supplementary list will be released on November 14. The current local body councils assumed office on December 21, 2020, and new councils must take charge by December 21 this year. Therefore, results must be declared, and official notifications issued before that date.
Elections will be held for 941 grama panchayats, 152 block panchayats, 14 district panchayats, 86 municipalities (excluding Mattannur, whose term ends in 2027), and 6 municipal corporations. The ward reservation draw and selection of heads of local bodies were completed by the end of October.
In the 2020 local body elections, voting was held in three phases (on December 8, 10, and 14) due to the COVID-19 situation, while in 2015, it was conducted in two phases. This year too, a two-phase election is expected.
Once the schedule is announced, there will be a short gap before the official notification. Nomination papers must be submitted within a week of the notification, and candidates will have 14 days for campaigning after the final list of candidates is confirmed.
The final voters’ list includes 2,84,30,761 voters—1,33,52,996 men, 1,49,59,273 women, and 271 transgender persons. Malappuram district has the highest number of voters (35,74,802), while Wayanad has the lowest (6,40,183).
