Ottapidaram
All 13 candidates
| # | Candidate | Votes · share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | P. MathanrajaWonTVK Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam | 81,62541.62% |
| 2 | P. M. RamajeyamDMK Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam | 52,54226.79% |
| Below this line, candidates lost their deposit: 32,539 votes or fewer, one-sixth of the 1,95,238 votes for all candidates | ||
| 3 | R. Sundararaj (lost deposit)AMMK Amma Makkal Munnettra Kazagam | 25,87113.19% |
| 4 | M. Anusiya (lost deposit)NTK Naam Tamilar Katchi | 17,2798.81% |
| 5 | Dr. K. Krishnasamy (lost deposit)PT Puthiya Tamilagam | 15,0507.67% |
| NOTANone of the above: not a candidate | 8790.45% | |
| 6 | C. Aruna Devi (lost deposit)NNNMNE Nam Naadu Nam Makkal Nam Ethirkaalam Katchi | 7610.39% |
| 7 | C. Selvakumar (lost deposit)TVAK Tamizhaga Vaazhvurimai Katchi | 5150.26% |
| 8 | A. Vedaprakash (lost deposit)IND Independent | 3870.20% |
| 9 | M. Ananth (lost deposit)IND Independent | 3570.18% |
| 10 | S. Muthuselvam (lost deposit)IND Independent | 2640.13% |
| 11 | S. Subbulakshmi (lost deposit)NIP Naam Indiar Party | 2300.12% |
| 12 | M. Lakshmanan (lost deposit)IND Independent | 2010.10% |
| 13 | G. Murugan (lost deposit)IND Independent | 1560.08% |
Ottapidaram — TVK's Mathanraja takes V.O.C Pillai's birthplace seat
TVK's P. Mathanraja won Ottapidaram over DMK's P.M. Ramajeyam — taking the SC-reserved seat that gave Tamil Nadu the freedom fighter V. O. Chidambaram Pillai (VOC), the 'Kappalottiya Tamizhan' who launched India's first indigenously-owned shipping company, the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company, in 1906.
The seat has been one of TN's most volatile through the post-delimitation era — Puthiya Tamilagam's K. Krishnasamy won it in 2011 (on AIADMK alliance, by 25,126), AIADMK's R. Sundararaj squeaked through in 2016 by just 493 votes (over the same Krishnasamy on the DMK alliance side), DMK's M. C. Shunmugaiah won in 2021 by 8,510, and in 2026 TVK's Mathanraja took it with the largest margin the seat has produced since the 2008 delimitation.
Where Ottapidaram was won
| Led by | Booths of 315 | Villages of 81 |
|---|---|---|
| P. Mathanraja TVK | 237 | 54 |
| P. M. Ramajeyam DMK | 40 | 14 |
| Others | 38 | 13 |
| Closest village | Mela Thattaparai: TVK ahead by 4 | |
P. Mathanraja’s biggest leads
- Mappillaiurani+9,44347 booths
- Thoothukudi+6,33747 booths
- Tharuvaikulam+1,6208 booths
P. M. Ramajeyam’s best villages
- Kattalangulam+1853 booths
- Kaliyavur+1773 booths
- Savarimangalam+1532 booths
Counted from Form 20, booth by booth (vote leads are in votes cast at the booth; postal ballots are counted for the whole seat only).
Every village and booth
The constituency
- Reservation
- Reserved for Scheduled Castes (SC)
- Lok Sabha seat
- Thoothukkudi
- Electors, 2026
- 2,43,756women 1,24,990 (51.3%) · men 1,18,710 (48.7%) · third gender 56
Sources · electoral roll, reservation: ECI · Lok Sabha seat: 2008 delimitation order
Postal ballot breakdown
2,837 postal ballots · from polling staff, election-duty officers, absentee voters · counted before EVM rounds
| # | Candidate | Party | Postal votes | EVM votes | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | P. Mathanraja | TVK | 1,064 | 80,561 | 81,625 |
| 2 | P. M. Ramajeyam | DMK | 615 | 51,927 | 52,542 |
| 3 | R. Sundararaj | AMMK | 481 | 25,390 | 25,871 |
| 4 | M. Anusiya | NTK | 313 | 16,966 | 17,279 |
| 5 | Dr. K. Krishnasamy | PT | 294 | 14,756 | 15,050 |
Source: Election Commission of India · Form 20 data via results.eci.gov.in
How this seat compares
| Measure | This seat | Rank | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winning margin, votes | 29,083 | 39th | 11,416 |
| Winner’s share | 41.6% | 62nd | 37.4% |
| Turnout | 80.5% | 199th | 86.9% |
| Votes cast | 1,96,117 | 151st | 2,08,471 |
| Candidates | 13 | =165th | 15 |
| NOTA votes | 879 | =91st | 784 |
| Since 2021 | TVK took the seat from DMK. In 2021 M. C. Shunmugaiah won it by 8,510 votes. | ||
Winners and runners-up, 2006–2026
2011, 2016 and 2021 rows: checked against the ECI detailed results. Earlier rows: secondary sources. Two-part pill: alliance leader first, then the candidate's party.
Ottapidaram was one of TN's tightest seats in 2016 — a 493-vote AIADMK gain from Puthiya Tamilagam's K. Krishnasamy (then on the DMK alliance ticket). Krishnasamy himself crosses alliance sides through these rows: in 2011 he won on PT in AIADMK alliance, and by 2016 had switched PT into the DMK alliance.
The 2026 TVK margin is the largest result the seat has produced post-2008.
About Ottapidaram
Ottapidaram (AC 217) is the SC-reserved birthplace constituency of V. O. Chidambaram Pillai, the freedom fighter known as 'Kappalottiya Tamizhan' (The Tamil Helmsman) who founded the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company in 1906 — the first Indian-owned shipping line, set up to break the British India Steam Navigation Company's monopoly on the Tuticorin-Colombo route.
VOC was sentenced to two life terms by the British in 1908 for sedition and is celebrated to this day in TN civic memory; Tuticorin port carries his name. The seat has flipped repeatedly across elections, and the 2026 TVK margin is the post-delimitation high.
Ottapidaram & VOC's Country
Ottapidaram is the home soil of V. O. Chidambaram Pillai — the freedom fighter the British sentenced to two life terms in 1908 for sedition, whose Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company in 1906 was the first Indian-owned shipping line on the Tuticorin-Colombo route.
Visit the VOC memorial in his birthplace, then drive 35 km east to Tuticorin port that carries his name and the Roche Park colonial quarter. The country in between is palm-grove and red-soil — the reserved-coast terrain that has sent the freedom-fighter's legacy into every subsequent generation of TN civic life.
Plan your trip on TN Explorer →Quick answers
Who won Ottapidaram in the 2026 Tamil Nadu election?
P. Mathanraja of TVK won Ottapidaram (AC 217) in the April 2026 Assembly election with 81,625 votes, 41.62% of the votes polled, ahead of P. M. Ramajeyam of DMK by 29,083 votes.
Who is the MLA of Ottapidaram?
P. Mathanraja of TVK was elected MLA for Ottapidaram in April 2026 and sits in the 17th Tamil Nadu Assembly.
What was the turnout in Ottapidaram in 2026?
Turnout was 80.5%: 1,96,117 of 2,43,756 electors voted.
Which district is Ottapidaram in?
Ottapidaram (constituency number 217) is in Thoothukudi district, part of the Thoothukkudi Lok Sabha seat.
Who won Ottapidaram before 2026?
In 2021 M. C. Shunmugaiah of DMK won by 8,510 votes over P. Mohan. In 2016 R. Sundararaj of AIADMK won by 493 votes over K. Krishnasamy.
Sources: Form 20, booth-wise result (PDF)ECI result, AC 217
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