Lok Sabha Election 2019: Counting in 20 seats of Kerala on Thursday

EMVs will be opened, postal ballots counted and VVPATs tallied on May 23 (Thursday) across the 20 Lok Sabha constituencies in Kerala to find out the results of General Election 2019. The fate of 243 candidates in fray in the 20 seats including Wayanad, from where Congress president Rahul Gandhi is contesting, is expected to be announced by later Thursday.

Kerala went to poll in a single phase on April 23 during the third phase of elections in the country and recorded a voter turnout of 77.67 per cent. While the total number of electors were 2,61,51,534, around 2,03,11,852 came out to exercise their franchise.

The 20 Lok Sabha constituencies in Kerala are Alappuzha, Alathur, Attingal, Chalakudy, Ernakulam, Idukki, Kannur, Kasaragod, Kollam, Kottayam, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Mavelikara, Palakkad, Pathanamthitta, Ponnani, Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur, Vatakara and Wayanad.

KEY CANDIDATES

The most talked-about seat in Kerala is that of Wayanad from where Congress president Rahul Gandhi is contesting against CPI's P P Suneer and NDA's Thushar Vellapally.

Besides him, two-time sitting Member of Parliament (MP) Shashi Tharoor and Union Minister Alphons Kannanthanam are among other prominent candidates to watch out for.

In the 2014 general election, the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) won 12 seats while the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist)(CPIM) led Left Democratic Front managed to bag just eight seats.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on the other hand, has never won a Lok Sabha seat in Kerala.

According to the exit polls which were declared on May 19 after the conclusion of the seventh phase at 6 pm, the Congress-led UDF is expected to gain massive victory in the state while the BJP is likely to open his account in the state.

The ruling CPI(M) led LDF is most likely to face disappointment this time around.

What were the predictions of exit polls?

According to India Today-Axis, 15-16 seats will go to the UDF, three to five seats to the LDF and 0-1 seats will be bagged by the BJP in Kerala.

While Today's Chanakya‏ predicted 16 ± 3 seats for the UDF, 4 ± 3 seats for the LDF and  0 ± 1 seats for the BJP, News 18 IPSOS exit polls suggested seven to nine seats will go to the Congress-led UDF, while the CPI(M)-led LDF could end up with 11 to 13 seats.

The BJP is predicted to win one seat, according to News 18-IPSOS

Though the exit poll predictions may not always be true, pollsters claim they give an idea of the emerging political situation.