46 women in 40 seats: Who will make it to the Kerala Assembly? | Part 2

In the 15th Kerala Legislative Assembly, there were 11 women MLAs. All but one, CPI's C K Asha, are seeking a fresh mandate.
In the 2026 election, the three mainstream fronts — the Congress-led UDF, the CPM-led LDF, and the BJP-led NDA — have fielded 46 women out of 420 candidates for 140 seats, about 11%. Their contests are spread across 40 constituencies. The UDF has fielded 12 women, while the LDF and the NDA have given tickets to 18 and 16 candidates, respectively.
In a two-part series, Onmanorama reviews 40 contests in 14 districts featuring 46 women candidates. Part 2 covers 7 districts.
Click here to read part one

Ernakulam
In Ernakulam, the LDF has fielded two women, the NDA three, and the UDF one, making it the district with the highest number of female candidates. Six women are in the fray in Ernakulam with 14 constituencies.

Paravur
In Paravur, the seat has been firmly held by Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan (61) since 2001, with his margin widening in successive elections.

The BJP fields Valsala Prasanna Kumar, former Congress chairperson of North Paravur Municipality (2010-2015). She joined the BJP this February. The CPI has fielded sitting MLA E T Taison, shifted from Kaipamangalam constituency, with a mandate to wrest the seat. Satheesan continues to command around 50% vote share, keeping the contest largely between the LDF and the UDF.

Vypeen
Both the LDF and the NDA have fielded women in Vypeen. The LDF has sent Vypeen MLA K N Unnikrishnan to Tripunithura to wrest it from the Congress. In Vypeen, which the CPM has held since 2011, it has fielded Adv M B Shyni, a promising SFI product active in the constituency. The NDA’s Twenty20 has fielded Anitha Thomas, a dancer, actor and entrepreneur who previously contested from Ravipuram division in the Kochi Corporation, where she polled 98 votes and finished fourth. They take on Congress’s Tony Chammany, former Kochi Mayor (2010–15).

Tripunithura
The BJP, which controls Tripunithura municipality, has ceded the assembly segment to the Twenty20 Party, which fields Anjali Nai, an award-winning actor, TV anchor and model.

The Congress misses its six-term MLA K Babu, who has faced only one defeat since 1991, in 2016 to CPM’s M Swaraj. In 2021, Babu's winning margin narrowed to just 1,232 votes. This time, the CPM has fielded Vypeen MLA K N Unnikrishnan. The Congress also shifted Deepak Joy, Unnikrishnan’s rival in Vypeen, to Tripunithura. In 2021, the BJP's vote share dropped by 4 points to 15%.

Thrikkakara
The CPM has fielded a grassroots woman leader to take on incumbent MLA Uma Thomas of the Congress. Uma Thomas entered the Assembly through the 2022 by-election necessitated by the death of her husband, veteran Congress leader P T Thomas. She increased the Congress vote share by nearly 10 percentage points and secured a decisive margin of 25,016 votes.

The CPM's Adv Pushpa Das is a national leader of the party's women's wing and a member of the party's Ernakulam district secretariat. She has served as a Vazhakulam panchayat member (2010-2015) and block panchayat president.

The NDA's Twenty20 has nominated YouTuber Akhil Marar (38). The NDA saw its vote share dip by around six percentage points in the by-election, slipping below the 10% mark.

Idukki
NDA is the only alliance to field a woman candidate across Idukki district’s five assembly segments.

Udumbanchola
In Udumbanchola, NDA’s BDJS has fielded Adv Sangeetha Viswanathan. She is now the chairperson of the Spices Board. She is also the central secretary of SNDP Yogam women’s wing and state vice-president. Udumbanchola is a LDF stronghold, represented by K K Jayachandran from 2001 to 2016, and later by tongue-in-cheek M M Mani. The party has now re-fielded Jayachandran, with the LDF holding around 62% vote share. Congress has fielded Senapathi Venu, who lost to Mani in 2016 by 1,109 votes. NDA's vote share is under 6%.

Kottayam
The LDF and NDA have fielded one candidate each in Kottayam district’s nine constituencies.

Ettumanoor
In Ettumanoor, Twenty20 has fielded Athira D Nair, 25, among the youngest candidates in the fray. An entrepreneur with a Master’s degree in Computer Science, she is also a trained classical musician and dancer. For the UDF, the Kerala Congress (M) used to contest here, till it joined the LDF. However, the CPM wrested it from Kerala Congress in 2011, and since then, it has become a safe seat for the Left. In 2021, Devaswoms minister and CPM’s V N Vasavan won by a thumping margin of 14,303 votes. The Congress has fielded Nattakom Suresh. BJDS had a 20% vote share in 2016. When the BJP contested, it dropped to 10% in 2021.

Kaduthuruthy
In Kaduthuruthy, Kerala Congress (Mani), aligned with the LDF, has fielded Nirmala Jimmy, former Kottayam district panchayat president. She is the only female candidate fielded by KC(M). The constituency has a strong Kerala Congress presence. Nirmala Jimmy faces UDF’s Mons Joseph, a five-term MLA from Kaduthuruthy and leader of the rival Kerala Congress faction that continues with the UDF.

The NDA has fielded Suresh Ittikkunnel of BDJS, with the front holding around 9% vote share in the segment.

Alappuzha
The NDA has not fielded any candidate in Alappuzha's nine constituencies. The UDF and LDF have fielded two candidates each.

Aroor
Aroor was long defined by CPM’s strongest woman face, K R Gowri Amma, who won the seat in 1967, 1970, 1980, 1982, 1987 and 1991, and later again as JSS leader in 1996 and 2001 after breaking away from the CPM. In 2006, CPM’s A M Ariff ended her dominance, defeating Gowri Amma by 4,753 votes, and retained the seat in 2011 and 2016. His shift to the Lok Sabha contest in 2019 triggered a by-election, where Congress’s Shanimol Osman won, marking the party’s first victory since 1967.

Congress, however, failed to retain it in 2021. CPM fielded Daleema, known for her devotional songs, who defeated Osman as the Congress vote share also slipped by about 3 percentage points to 42%, while CPM’s share rose by 2.44 points. This time, too, the contest is between Daleema and Shanimol Osman. Daleema enjoys full CPM backing and support from sections of the Latin Church. The NDA has fielded Adv P S Jyothis of BDJS, with around 10% vote share and limited influence on the main contest.

Kayamkulam
In Kayamkulam, the CPM has fielded sitting MLA U Prathibha. Despite controversies involving her son, her popularity remains largely unaffected. A former SFI leader, she rose through local bodies: Thakazhy panchayat member (2000-05), panchayat president (2005-10), and Alappuzha district panchayat president (2010-15). In 2016, she won Kayamkulam, defeating Congress spokesperson M Liju (46) by 11,857 votes, and again in 2021 against Congress’s Aritha Babu, though her margin fell to 6,298. The Congress has re-fielded M Liju, his fourth attempt. He lost to G Sudhakaran in 2011 and to H Salam in Ambalapuzha in 2021, and now returns to Kayamkulam seeking a turnaround. BDJS, with 7% vote share, has fielded Thampi Mettuthara (55).

Mavelikkara
In Mavelikkara, the Congress has fielded Muthara Raj, a judoka with 17 years of experience and a five-time gold medallist. But the electoral arena is a different mat. She takes on the sitting MLA M S Arun Kumar of the CPM, who won in 2021 with a margin of 24,717 votes despite a 2.2-point dip in vote share. The NDA, with a vote share of 20.54%, has fielded K Ajimon (45).

Pathanamthitta
In Pathanamthitta, the UDF and NDA have not fielded any women candidates across the five constituencies. The district’s key battle is in Aranmula, where Health Minister Veena George is defending both her seat and political prestige.

Aranmula
In Aranmula, a sharp three-cornered contest is underway. CPM’s Veena George, who wrested the seat from the Congress in 2016 by defeating K Sivadasan Nair by 7,646 votes, retained it in 2021 with an increased margin of 19,003 votes over the same opponent.

This time, she faces BJP’s veteran Kummanam Rajasekharan and Youth Congress leader Abin Varkey Kodiyattu, known for his sharp attacks on the LDF government. Veena George, despite achievements in the health sector, has recently been on the defensive following controversy over her claim that she was attacked by KSU workers at Kannur railway station. Five KSU workers were arrested for attempted murder. But their bail order exposed the CPM narrative. All the protesters raised were black flags and slogans.

Abin Varkey has kept up pressure on the government, especially on issues of protest rights and police action. Both Veena George and Abin Varkey belong to the Orthodox Church. CPM currently holds around 46% vote share, Congress about 35%, while the BJP hovers near 20%, fluctuating with candidate strength.

Adoor
In Adoor, the CPI has fielded Priji Kannan, amid internal criticism over both her selection and her name change from Priji Sasidharan. She was a Kollam district panchayat member from 2020 to 2025. In December 2025, she contested in Kollam's Kareepra grama panchayat election and lost by 56 votes to the BJP candidate. Congress district panchayat member Sreenadevi Kunjamma accused her of changing the name of Priji Kannan to tap the sympathy wave following the death of former Congress district vice-president M G Kannan in May 2025. Within the CPI, criticism has also emerged over fielding a Kollam-based candidate.

The CPI currently holds the seat through Chittayam Gopakumar, who has represented Adoor since 2011, with margins rising from 607 (2011) to 25,460 (2016) before narrowing to 2,919 in 2021 when Congress fielded M G Kannan. Earlier, the seat was held by Congress veteran Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan in 2006. This time, Congress has fielded C V Santhakumar (46), the national coordinator for the All India Congress Committee (AICC) SC Department. The BJP has nominated Adv Pandalam Prathapan (62), with around 15% vote share.

Kollam
In Kollam, all three fronts have fielded two women candidates each across the district’s 11 constituencies.

Kollam

In Kollam, the Congress has fielded district president Bindu Krishna, who in 2021 lost to CPM’s M Mukesh by 2,072 votes. Mukesh, a two-time MLA and actor, is now under a cloud over allegations of sexual assault, harassment, and misconduct from within the film industry. The CPM has fielded S Jayamohan, chairperson of the Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation, who resigned from the post after his nomination, citing political morality. Bindu Krishna is one of the Congress’s most visible women leaders alongside Shanimol Osman. The UDF’s recent takeover of Kollam Corporation from the LDF has also shifted momentum. The BJP, 11% vote share, has fielded Dr Prathap Kumar N.

Kottarakkara
In Kottarakkara, Finance Minister K N Balagopal faces a three-cornered contest driven by political crossovers. Congress has fielded former three-time CPM MLA P Aisha Potty, who joined the party just ahead of the polls. BJP’s candidate R Reshmi was a former Mahila Congress leader. She contested against Balagopal in 2021, when the CPM's winning margin dropped sharply from 42,632 votes in 2016 to 10,814 votes. After Potty’s switch to the Congress, Reshmi moved to the BJP, which has a 15% voter share in Kottarakara.

Karunagappally
In Karunagappally, the CPI has fielded state council member Adv M S Thara. The seat, long held by CPI, was wrested by the Congress in 2021 when C R Mahesh defeated sitting CPI MLA R Ramachandran by 29,208 votes. Mahesh is an AICC member and Congress state general secretary. The BJP, with around 7% vote share, has fielded V S Jithindev.

Chadayamangalam
In Chadayamangalam, CPI National Council member and Minister J Chinchu Rani is seeking re-election. She replaced Mullakkara Ratnakaran in 2021 and won by 13,678 votes, defeating Congress’s M M Naseer. The contest is once again between Chinchu Rani and Naseer, with the BJP’s vote share rising from 3.26% (2011) to around 15% (2021). R S Arunraj is in the fray for the BJP.

Thiruvananthapuram
In Thiruvananthapuram, with 14 constituencies, all three fronts have fielded one woman candidate each.

Vattiyoorkavu
In Vattiyoorkavu, the BJP has fielded retired Director General of Police R Sreelekha (65), Kerala's first female IPS officer. She recently became a Thiruvananthapuram corporation councillor, after winning from Sasthamangalam by a margin of 708 votes and 49% vote share. She later expressed discontent after being overlooked for the mayoral post.

She faces two former MLAs who have both shaped the constituency’s recent political arc. Congress has re-fielded K Muraleedharan , Vattiyoorkavu MLA from 2011 to 2016 and 2016 to 2019, before moving to the Lok Sabha contest. The CPM fielded former city mayor V K Prasanth, who won the 2019 bypoll and retained the seat in 2021 with a bigger margin. The seat has swung sharply in recent cycles: Muraleedharan’s win in 2011, BJP’s surge to second place in 2016 under Kummanam Rajasekharan, CPM’s bypoll breakthrough in 2019, and retaining it in 2021, when BJP rose to 28.77%, and Congress slipped to third. This time, the triad turns fully competitive again.

Chirayinkeezhu
In Chirayinkeezhu, Congress has fielded Ramya Haridas, who rose to prominence with her 2019 Lok Sabha win in Alathur against a CPM stronghold. She failed to retain the seat in 2024. She later lost the Chelakkara Assembly bypoll, though she narrowed the CPM margin from around 40,000 to 10,000 votes.

This time, Ramya Haridas enters Chirayinkeezhu, a CPI bastion held by V Sasi for three terms since 2011. The CPI has fielded state council member Manoj Edamana. The BJP, with a vote share of around 22%, has nominated Chirayinkeezhu-native B S Anoo, who quit the Congress after he was denied a ticket. He was the Congress candidate in 2021, and he lost to Sasi by 14,017 votes.

Attingal
In Attingal, the CPM has fielded sitting MLA O S Ambika to defend the seat. In 2021, she defeated the BJP’s P Sudheer by 31,636 votes. RSP, a UDF constituent party, and BJP polled around 25% and 26% vote share respectively, while the CPM held a strong 47.35%. This time, RSP has fielded Santhosh Bhadran while BJP has re-nominated P Sudheer.