Uthangarai
Uthangarai 2026: TVK's N. Elaiyaraja takes SC seat by 5,198 votes over AIADMK
TVK's N. Elaiyaraja won the Uthangarai SC seat by 5,198 votes over AIADMK's T. M. Tamilselvam, the sitting MLA who had taken the seat in 2021 by a wide 28,387-vote margin. AIADMK's N. Manoranjitham Nagaraj had also held Uthangarai in 2011 and 2016, making this a long AIADMK stronghold. The 2026 result breaks that grip in a tight finish.
Top 5 candidates
| # | Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | N ELAIYARAJA | TVK | 70,201 | 34.61% |
| 2 | T M TAMILSELVAM | AIADMK | 65,003 | 32.05% |
| 3 | R KUPPUSAMY | CONG | 60,993 | 30.07% |
| 4 | MEKALA | NTK | 6,629 | 3.27% |
| 5 | NOTA | NOTA | 881 | 0.43% |
Postal ballot breakdown
Postal-ballot leader differs from overall winner. INC R KUPPUSAMY led postal ballots (1,116), but TVK N ELAIYARAJA won the seat overall (70,201).
| # | Candidate | Party | Postal votes | EVM votes | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | R KUPPUSAMY | INC | 1,116 | 59,877 | 60,993 |
| 2 | T M TAMILSELVAM | AIADMK | 922 | 64,081 | 65,003 |
| 3 | N ELAIYARAJA | TVK | 753 | 69,448 | 70,201 |
| 4 | MEKALA | NTK | 143 | 6,486 | 6,629 |
| 5 | NOTA | NOTA | 14 | 867 | 881 |
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 Uthangarai
Uthangarai is an SC-reserved seat in Krishnagiri district that sits on the Tamil Nadu-Karnataka border belt, taking in Uthangarai town and surrounding panchayats in the rocky Eastern Ghats foothills. The economy is largely rural, with mango orchards, ragi, and groundnut as the main crops, and small granite and stone-cutting units along the Hosur-Salem highway. Many residents move seasonally to Hosur, Krishnagiri or Bengaluru for work. Local politics turns on irrigation projects, SC welfare schemes, and the stretch of the Salem-Bengaluru rail corridor that runs through. The seat has stayed in AIADMK's column for three cycles before 2026.
Around Uthangarai
Uthangarai's mango orchards spill into the Kelavarapalli dam catchment a short drive south, and the Harur road leads into the Yelagiri-Sitheri hills. Krishnagiri Fort and the Krishnagiri reservoir lie along the Hosur-Salem highway.
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