The counting of votes for the Assembly elections 2026 in five States is under way, with early trends expected to emerge shortly from all constituencies. Votes are being counted, in multiple rounds, across hundreds of constituencies under tight security arrangements. The results will decide the next governments in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and West Bengal. Along with the main polls, counting for several Assembly bypolls is also in progress.

Also read | All set for counting; ECI promises transparency

Tamil Nadu

“Amid a comprehensive three-tier security, counting of votes commenced at 8 a.m. on Monday (May 4, 2026) in all the 62 designated counting centres in the State,” officials said.

“The vote-counting exercise commenced at 8 a.m. with the postal ballots and at 8.30 a.m., counting of votes recorded in EVMs will be taken up,” they said. Elections to 234 Assembly segments were held in the State on April 23, 2026.

The incumbent DMK regime has fought hard to retain power, and its archrival AIADMK has slogged to win power after five years as the principal Opposition party. Actor-turned politician Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam’s (TVK) entry into the electoral arena has made predictions about the winning prospects tough, and the Tamil nationalist Seeman's Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) is another factor in the polls.

Puducherry

“Counting of votes commenced at 8 a.m. in all the six designated counting centres in Puducherry,” officials said. “The vote-counting exercise commenced at 8 a.m. with the postal ballots, and at 8.30 a.m., counting of votes recorded in EVMs will be taken up,” they said. Elections to 30 Assembly segments were held in Puducherry on April 9.

The incumbent AINRC regime has put up a big fight to retain power. Opposition INDIA bloc comprising parties, including the Congress and the DMK, despite friction among them, has shown determination to unseat Chief Minister N. Rangasamy-led NR Congress government.

Kerala

The counting of votes polled in the April 9 Assembly elections in Kerala commenced at 8 a.m. at 140 centres spread across 43 locations in the State. It brings to an end the intense and high-stakes contest among the ruling Left Democratic Front, the Opposition United Democratic Front (UDF), and the Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP) National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

The strongrooms, where the electronic voting machines were stored, were opened at around 6.30 a.m. in the presence of Election Commission observers, security personnel, and representatives of candidates. The counting commenced with the tallying of the postal ballots which account for 1.36% of the total votes polled. A broad picture of the election outcome is expected by the afternoon.

The results are crucial for all three fronts as they seek to strengthen their position in the State’s evolving political landscape. Kerala has a total of 2,71,42,952 voters, of whom 79.63% cast their votes across 140 Assembly constituencies on April 9.

Officials said that 15,464 personnel have been deployed for the exercise, comprising 140 Returning Officers, 1,340 additional returning officers, 4,208 micro observers, 4,208 counting supervisors, and 5,563 counting assistants.

Security arrangements have been put in place, with 25 companies of Central forces deployed alongside State police personnel to guard the counting centres.

“By including the postal ballots received till May 1, the turnout has tentatively risen to 79.70%,” Kerala CEO Rathan U. Kelkar said.

The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) had said that 53,984 postal ballots had been issued to service voters, of which 20,028 had been received as of May 1. A total of 883 candidates contested the election for 140 seats in the State.

Assam

The ruling BJP was leading in 10 of the 126 Assembly constituencies in Assam, while the Opposition Congress was ahead in six, according to initial trends shown by television channels. The Election Commission is yet to come out with any official figures.

Counting of votes began at 8 a.m., with postal ballots being taken up first. Trends for other parties were yet to emerge.

Counting is being held at 40 centres across all 35 districts, with most districts having a single centre covering all constituencies.

However, in Nagaon district, counting is being conducted at three separate centres, while Kokrajhar, Tinsukia and Jorhat have two centres each. Polling in all 126 Assembly constituencies in the State was held in a single phase on April 9 with a record turnout of 85.96% of the over 2.50 crore electorate.

West Bengal

“Stringent security arrangements were put in place across West Bengal as counting of votes for the high-stakes Assembly elections began at 8 a.m.,” officials said.

“More than 2.5 lakh personnel of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), along with the State police, have been deployed at 77 counting centres across 23 districts under a multi-layered security grid,” they said.

West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal said all preparations are complete for the counting of votes for 293 Assembly seats. “Preparations are ready as required,” he told reporters at the Election Commission office.

Strongrooms housing EVMs were placed under round-the-clock surveillance, as the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the BJP workers gathered outside several centres in the run-up to counting.

“Adequate measures are in place to ensure a smooth and peaceful counting process, with quick response teams on standby to tackle any untoward incidents,” another official said.

Bypolls

Counting of votes for the byelection to the Umreth Assembly seat in Gujarat is under way amid tight security.

The bypoll, held on April 23, was necessitated following the death of the then-sitting BJP MLA Govind Parmar.

The byelection recorded 59.04% voting at 306 polling stations of the Assembly seat, with six candidates in the fray.

Further, the counting of votes for the bypoll to the Koridang Assembly constituency in Mokokchung district of Nagaland began amid tight security.

Officials said the process started at 8 a.m. at the Deputy Commissioner’s office. Elaborate security measures, including multi-layer deployment of personnel and CCTV surveillance, have been put in place, keeping in view earlier incidents of poll-related violence.

“Counting of votes for the byelection to the Dharmanagar Assembly constituency in North Tripura began amidst tight security arrangements,” an official said.

“A Prohibitory Order under Section 163 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) came into force at 6 a.m. within a 100-metre radius of the counting hall to prevent any law and order problems,” Returning Officer (RO) Debjani Choudhury said.

Also, counting of votes for bypolls to the Baramati and Rahuri Assembly seats in Maharashtra got under way.

A voter turnout of 58.27% was recorded in the Baramati Assembly constituency, where Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar is contesting, while Rahuri registered a 56.20%, as per election officials. The counting of votes began at 8 a.m. in both the Assembly segments.

No major political party fielded a candidate against Ms. Pawar, and she is expected to secure a comfortable victory given her family’s hold over the constituency.