Ranipet
Ranipet 2026: TVK's Thahira beats DMK's R. Gandhi by 5,787 votes
TVK's Thahira won Ranipet by 5,787 votes, ousting DMK's R. Gandhi, who had carried the seat in 2006, 2016 and 2021. Gandhi's only earlier slip was 2011, when AIADMK's A. Mohammedjan took the seat by 14,201 votes during the Jayalalithaa wave. The TVK win turns a familiar DMK column into a fresh contest.
Top 5 candidates
| # | Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | THAHIRA | TVK | 91,149 | 41.48% |
| 2 | R. GANDHI | DMK | 85,362 | 38.85% |
| 3 | V.M. KARTHIKEYAN | BJP | 32,060 | 14.59% |
| 4 | THAARIKHA SALMAN | NTK | 7,236 | 3.29% |
| 5 | NOTA | NOTA | 1,209 | 0.55% |
Postal ballot breakdown
Postal-ballot leader differs from overall winner. DMK R. GANDHI led postal ballots (506), but TVK THAHIRA won the seat overall (91,149).
| # | Candidate | Party | Postal votes | EVM votes | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | R. GANDHI | DMK | 506 | 84,856 | 85,362 |
| 2 | THAHIRA | TVK | 421 | 90,728 | 91,149 |
| 3 | V.M. KARTHIKEYAN | BJP | 270 | 31,790 | 32,060 |
| 4 | THAARIKHA SALMAN | NTK | 89 | 7,147 | 7,236 |
| 5 | A. NARESHKUMAR | IND | 10 | 744 | 754 |
Source: Election Commission of India · Form 20 data via results.eci.gov.in
Past results
Verified winners and runners-up across the last five elections, with the major alliance partners each side fielded.
About Ranipet
Ranipet, now headquarters of the district carved out in 2019, is Tamil Nadu's leather capital. The SIPCOT industrial estate runs along the Chennai-Bengaluru highway with tanneries, chemical units, and footwear exporters that ship to Europe. The town also hosts the Sankar Nethralaya outreach hospital, the Old Town bazaar, and the historic Arcot taluk on its western edge. Ranipet's politics has tracked employment in tanneries, effluent treatment around the Palar, and infrastructure along NH-48. R. Gandhi of the DMK held the seat for most of the past two decades; the 2026 result moves a leather-belt anchor away from his column.
Around Ranipet
Ranipet's old quarter borders Arcot, the seat of the Carnatic Nawabs, with the Delhi Gate and Tipu Mahal still standing. A short drive west reaches Vellore Fort and the Palar bed, while the SIPCOT belt to the east leads on to Sriperumbudur.
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