Tenkasi
All 22 candidates
| # | Candidate | Votes · share |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dr. Kalai KathiravanWonDMK Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam | 79,69933.92% |
| 2 | S. Selva Mohandas PandianAIADMK All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam | 69,40029.53% |
| 3 | A. RajaprakashTVK Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam | 55,54323.64% |
| Below this line, candidates lost their deposit: 39,052 votes or fewer, one-sixth of the 2,34,314 votes for all candidates | ||
| 4 | P. Pushpalatha (lost deposit)NTK Naam Tamilar Katchi | 16,3946.98% |
| 5 | M. Poosa Durai (lost deposit)AIPTMM All India Puratchi Thalaivar Makkal Munnettra Kazhagam | 7,7153.28% |
| 6 | S. Thirumalai Kumar (lost deposit)PT Puthiya Tamilagam | 1,3650.58% |
| NOTANone of the above: not a candidate | 6730.29% | |
| 7 | G. Poorana Selvan (lost deposit)IND Independent | 5480.23% |
| 8 | Isaki Pandian (lost deposit)BSP Bahujan Samaj Party | 5180.22% |
| 9 | S. Thangapalam (lost deposit)IND Independent | 4320.18% |
| 10 | Durairaj (lost deposit)IND Independent | 4240.18% |
| 11 | M. Ponnudurai (lost deposit)IND Independent | 3110.13% |
| 12 | Shahul Hameed (lost deposit)IND Independent | 2950.13% |
| 13 | S. Manogaran (lost deposit)KDC Kamarajar Deseeya Congress | 2440.10% |
| 14 | P. Noble Krishna (lost deposit)IND Independent | 2390.10% |
| 15 | Gomathi Sankar (lost deposit)TVAK Tamizhaga Vaazhvurimai Katchi | 2340.10% |
| 16 | R. Ramkumar (lost deposit)IND Independent | 2240.10% |
| 17 | R. Krishnan (lost deposit)IND Independent | 2040.09% |
| 18 | K. M. Kaliappan (lost deposit)IND Independent | 1300.06% |
| 19 | K. Muthu (lost deposit)IND Independent | 1140.05% |
| 20 | A. Mariappan (lost deposit)IND Independent | 1110.05% |
| 21 | S. Ganeshan (lost deposit)IND Independent | 900.04% |
| 22 | R. Selvakumar (lost deposit)NIP Naam Indiar Party | 800.03% |
Tenkasi — DMK's Kalai Kathiravan holds 'Southern Kasi' seat
DMK's Dr Kalai Kathiravan held Tenkasi over AIADMK's S. Selva Mohandas Pandian — keeping the seat in the DMK alliance column it has held since 2021, when INC's S. Palani Nadar took it for the DMK alliance by an extraordinary 370-vote margin (the third-tightest margin of that entire election in TN).
Tenkasi has been a knife-edge seat for two consecutive elections before — Selva Mohandas Pandian himself won here for the AIADMK in 2016 by just 462 votes over Palani Nadar (INC, DMK alliance) — and the 2026 result is the seat's most decisive in over a decade.
Actor R. Sarathkumar carried the seat in 2011 on the AIADMK alliance ticket (his AISMK contesting on the AIADMK two-leaves symbol).
Where Tenkasi was won
| Led by | Booths of 359 | Villages of 94 |
|---|---|---|
| Dr. Kalai Kathiravan DMK | 144 | 42 |
| S. Selva Mohandas Pandian AIADMK | 168 | 47 |
| Others | 47 | 5 |
| Closest village | Madathur: AIADMK ahead by 4 | |
Dr. Kalai Kathiravan’s biggest leads
- Tenkasi+8,84559 booths
- Keela Veeranam+1,3567 booths
- Melappuliyur+52010 booths
S. Selva Mohandas Pandian’s best villages
- Keelappuliyur+7696 booths
- Alagappapuram+5822 booths
- Sivanadanoor+4953 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
- General seat (not reserved)
- Lok Sabha seat
- Tenkasi (SC)
- Electors, 2026
- 2,81,624women 1,44,282 (51.2%) · men 1,37,240 (48.7%) · third gender 102
Sources · electoral roll, reservation: ECI · Lok Sabha seat: 2008 delimitation order
Postal ballot breakdown
3,019 postal ballots · from polling staff, election-duty officers, absentee voters · counted before EVM rounds
| # | Candidate | Party | Postal votes | EVM votes | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dr. Kalai Kathiravan | DMK | 1,164 | 78,535 | 79,699 |
| 2 | S. Selva Mohandas Pandian | AIADMK | 774 | 68,626 | 69,400 |
| 3 | A. Rajaprakash | TVK | 614 | 54,929 | 55,543 |
| 4 | P. Pushpalatha | NTK | 273 | 16,121 | 16,394 |
| 5 | M. Poosa Durai | AIPTMM | 76 | 7,639 | 7,715 |
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 | 10,299 | 126th | 11,416 |
| Winner’s share | 33.9% | 190th | 37.4% |
| Turnout | 83.4% | 167th | 86.9% |
| Votes cast | 2,34,987 | 45th | 2,08,471 |
| Candidates | 22 | =46th | 15 |
| NOTA votes | 673 | =158th | 784 |
| Since 2021 | DMK took the seat from INC. In 2021 S. Palani Nadar won it by 370 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.
Tenkasi's two prior elections were among the tightest in TN — 462 votes in 2016 and 370 votes in 2021, between the same two candidates (Selvamohandas Pandian for AIADMK and Palani Nadar for INC on the DMK alliance ticket). The 2026 DMK margin finally breaks that knife-edge pattern.
Actor R. Sarathkumar's 2011 win was on the AIADMK two-leaves symbol — his All India Samathuva Makkal Katchi (AISMK) was contesting in the AIADMK alliance. The 2006 row is from the older pre-delimitation Tenkasi seat.
About Tenkasi
Tenkasi (AC 222) is the headquarters constituency of the eponymous district, carved out of Tirunelveli in 2019. The town's name means 'Southern Kasi' (Varanasi of the south); its 14th-century Kasi Viswanathar Temple, raised by the Pandya kings to spare devotees the long trip to the original Kasi on the Ganges, anchors the old town.
The seat sits at the foothills of the Western Ghats — Courtallam, the 'Spa of South India' with its nine waterfalls, is a 5 km drive away and pulls heavy crowds through the June-September monsoon-bath season. Tenkasi was a 462-vote and then 370-vote knife-edge seat for two consecutive elections before the 2026 DMK margin opened up.
Tenkasi & Courtallam
Tenkasi is the 'Southern Kasi' — a Pandya-era Kasi Viswanathar shrine on the Western Ghats foothills, raised so devotees could earn the merit of Varanasi without the journey.
Five kilometres west, Courtallam's nine waterfalls turn the June-September monsoon-bath season into one of TN's most-loved water holidays — the Main Falls, Five Falls, Old Courtallam and the high Honey Falls each draw their own daily pilgrim queue. Push west into the Ghats for Papanasam Dam and the wildlife reserves; this is the gateway to the Mundanthurai-Kalakad tiger country.
Plan your trip on TN Explorer →Quick answers
Who won Tenkasi in the 2026 Tamil Nadu election?
Dr. Kalai Kathiravan of DMK won Tenkasi (AC 222) in the April 2026 Assembly election with 79,699 votes, 33.92% of the votes polled, ahead of S. Selva Mohandas Pandian of AIADMK by 10,299 votes.
Who is the MLA of Tenkasi?
Dr. Kalai Kathiravan of DMK was elected MLA for Tenkasi in April 2026 and sits in the 17th Tamil Nadu Assembly.
What was the turnout in Tenkasi in 2026?
Turnout was 83.4%: 2,34,987 of 2,81,624 electors voted.
Which district is Tenkasi in?
Tenkasi (constituency number 222) is in Tenkasi district, part of the Tenkasi (SC) Lok Sabha seat.
Who won Tenkasi before 2026?
In 2021 S. Palani Nadar of INC won by 370 votes over S. Selvamohandas Pandian. In 2016 S. Selvamohandas Pandian of AIADMK won by 462 votes over S. Palani Nadar.
Sources: Form 20, booth-wise result (PDF)ECI result, AC 222
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