Kerala Local Body Polls on December 9 and 11, Counting on December 13
State Election Commission announces two-phase civic polls across 1,199 local bodies; Model Code of Conduct comes into effect
Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala State Election Commission on Monday announced that local body elections will be held in two phases on December 9 and 11, with counting of votes on December 13.
In the first phase on December 9, polling will be held in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Kottayam, Idukki, Alappuzha and Ernakulam districts. The remaining seven districts — Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Wayanad, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasaragod — will vote in the second phase on December 11.
State Election Commissioner A Shahjahan said the model code of conduct has come into effect with immediate effect. The last date for filing nominations is November 21, scrutiny will take place on November 22, and the last date for withdrawal is November 24. Polling will be held from 7 am to 5 pm, with a mock poll in each booth an hour before voting begins.
Elections will be conducted in 1,199 of the state’s 1,200 local bodies, covering 23,612 wards. Only Mattannur municipality in Kannur district is excluded as its term ends in 2027.
Voting will take place in 33,746 polling stations, including 28,127 in panchayats. Kerala has a total of 2,84,30,761 voters — 1,34,12,470 men, 1,50,18,010 women, and 282 transgender persons.
The expenditure limits have been fixed at Rs 25,000 for grama panchayat candidates, Rs 75,000 for block panchayats and municipalities, and Rs 1.5 lakh for district panchayats and corporations.
The election process will conclude on December 18, and the newly elected representatives will assume office on December 20.
Political Reactions
CPM state secretary M V Govindan expressed confidence in retaining power, citing the government’s development and welfare initiatives.
Kerala PCC president Sunny Joseph said there is strong anti-incumbency and predicted a shift in voter sentiment.
BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar said the people are disillusioned with both fronts and that the BJP aims to usher in a “new political culture” in the state.
Local Bodies at a Glance
Grama Panchayats: 941
Block Panchayats: 152
District Panchayats: 14
Municipalities: 87
Corporations: 6
