Usilampatti
Usilampatti 1,805-vote thriller — TVK ends N. Bharathi's 10-year AIADMK hold
TVK's M. Vijay edged out sitting AIADMK MLA I. Mahendran by 1,805 votes in Usilampatti — ending a three-cycle AIADMK fortress in this Mukkulathor (Thevar)-belt seat near Madurai. AIADMK's N. Bharathi held the seat in 2016 and 2021, riding the community's historically AIADMK-leaning tilt; the 2026 result was the closest result the seat has produced in its post-delimitation history. Notably, the DMK alliance ceded Usilampatti to its Congress partner — INC's T. Saravanakumar finished third with 59,465 votes — and the splintering of the anti-AIADMK vote across CONG and TVK still tipped against the AIADMK incumbent by 1,805.
Top 5 candidates
| # | Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | VIJAY. M | TVK | 65,743 | 29.77% |
| 2 | MAHENDRAN. I | AIADMK | 63,938 | 28.96% |
| 3 | SARAVANAKUMAR. T | CONG | 59,465 | 26.93% |
| 4 | AYYAPPAN. P | IND | 16,620 | 7.53% |
| 5 | ABIRAMI. D | NTK | 15,185 | 6.88% |
Postal ballot breakdown
| # | Candidate | Party | Postal votes | EVM votes | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | VIJAY. M | TVK | 1,050 | 64,693 | 65,743 |
| 2 | MAHENDRAN. I | AIADMK | 732 | 63,206 | 63,938 |
| 3 | SARAVANAKUMAR. T | INC | 624 | 58,841 | 59,465 |
| 4 | ABIRAMI. D | NTK | 436 | 14,749 | 15,185 |
| 5 | AYYAPPAN. P | AIPTMM | 317 | 16,303 | 16,620 |
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.
AIADMK held Usilampatti for three consecutive cycles (2011, 2016, 2021) before TVK's 1,805-vote win in 2026. The 2011 + 2006 margins are rounded approximations from secondary sources; 2016, 2021 and 2026 figures match ECI data. The DMK alliance ceded Usilampatti to its INC partner in 2026 — Congress's T. Saravanakumar finished third with 59,465 votes — which split the anti-AIADMK vote three ways.
About Usilampatti
Usilampatti is an assembly constituency in Madurai district, about 40 km west of Madurai city near the Andipatti and Theni district borders. It is the headline seat of the Mukkulathor (Thevar) heartland — Pasumpon Muthuramalinga Thevar's birthplace at Pasumpon village is 30 km away, and the community's annual Guru Pooja each October draws lakhs to the memorial. The constituency leans toward livestock economy: Usilampatti's Aadu Santhai (goat market) is one of Tamil Nadu's largest weekly bazaars, famous for the native Kanni Aadu breed.
Usilampatti & Thevar Country
Usilampatti is the threshold where Madurai's plains lift toward the Western Ghats — a Mukkulathor stronghold steeped in Pasumpon Thevar's legacy and ringed by hill roads that climb to Megamalai's cardamom belt and Suruli Falls. Time your trip with the Wednesday goat market or the October Guru Pooja at Pasumpon for the constituency's full cultural texture; the Vaigai dam catchment and Cumbum Valley grape country lie within an hour west.
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