Puducherry election results 2026: Counting of votes for all 30 Puducherry assembly seats begins shortly, and with it, the answer to whether exit polls, which have handed the NDA a clear advantage, have read the room correctly.

Since Puducherry is a small assembly, sixteen seats decide who will form the government. Every seat, every margin, and every surprise from a debutant party carries outsized consequences.

What the polls are projecting

The exit poll consensus points firmly toward the NDA, led locally by the All India NR Congress (AINRC) and the BJP. India Today-Axis My India projects the alliance winning 16–20 seats — exactly the majority mark and above. Kamakhya Analytics places them at 17–24. Praja Poll is the most bullish, projecting 19–25. The Poll of Exit Polls settles on NDA: 17, DMK+: 9, Others: 3.

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The Congress-DMK-VCK combine is projected in the range of 6–13 seats across surveys, with Times Now-JVC giving them their highest estimate at 11–13. Actor Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, contesting for the first time, is projected at 2–4 seats by India Today-Axis My India and Kamakhya Analytics — though several other polls have not broken out their numbers separately.

A record turnout that complicates the picture

Puducherry recorded a voter turnout of 89.87 per cent — the highest since it became part of India in 1964. High turnout figures rarely tell a single story, but in a 30-seat assembly where a swing of two or three seats changes the government, that participation level adds an unpredictable dimension to every projection.

The new variable: TVK

What makes 2026 categorically different from 2021 or 2016 is the arrival of Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam. Actor Vijay's party has stepped into the electoral field for the first time in Puducherry, making several constituencies more competitive and harder to model. Seeman's Naam Tamilar Katchi adds another layer. In a house of 30, even two or three seats won by new entrants can determine who governs.

Seats and candidates to watch

The most watched contest today is in Thattanchavady, where former Chief Minister V Vaithilingam — a politician whose career stretches back to 1980 and who became Puducherry's second-youngest chief minister at 40 — is directly challenging sitting Chief Minister N Rangaswamy of the AINRC.

In Karaikkal South, senior DMK leader AMH Nazeem is seeking to hold a seat he won in 2021 after one of the region's most dramatic near-misses — a loss by just 20 votes in 2016.

Raj Bhavan has turned into one of the most unpredictable multi-cornered contests of this election. BJP state president VP Ramalingam faces rivals from Congress, DMK, NTK, and TVK simultaneously.

In Lawspet, V Saminathan — once the BJP's longest-serving state president — is contesting on a TVK ticket, a switch that has drawn considerable attention. He faces VP Sivakolundhu of the AINRC.

Mudaliarpet sees Minority Affairs Minister A Johnkumar defending his seat on a BJP ticket, while in Mannadipet, A Namassivayam — who resigned from Congress, joined the BJP, and won in 2021 by 2,750 votes — seeks a second consecutive term under the saffron banner.

In Villianur, Leader of Opposition R Siva of the DMK contests again from a seat he has held since 2021, drawing praise from party chief MK Stalin after his last victory.

Published on: May 4, 2026 7:09 AM IST