Election Results 2026 LIVE UPDATES: Can BJP close the gap with Mamata Banerjee’s TMC in West Bengal? Will Vijay’s TVK dent the prospects of MK Stalin-led DMK in Tamil Nadu? Is Kerala headed for a photo finish between the Congress-led UDF and Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF? Will Assam give Himanta Biswa Sarma’s BJP government another five years in power? And how accurate were the exit polls that predicted the return of N. Rangasamy’s NDA government in Puducherry?
Answers to all these questions will emerge today as election results pour in across four states and one Union Territory that went to the polls between 9 and 29 April.
As many as 15.93 crore people voted across the four states and one UT, with West Bengal witnessing a record voter turnout of 92.47 percent, the highest since Independence.
Stay tuned to ThePrint for the latest on assembly election results for West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry.
Election Results 2026 | LIVE UPDATES
11.15 am: A disruptor in Tamil Nadu, a revival in Kerala, signs of power retention in Assam
Vijay emerges as the game changer in Tamil Nadu. BJP surges ahead in West Bengal in early trends. In Kerala, there are signs of Congress revival. BJP set to retain Assam. Join ThePrint Political Editor D.K. Singh analyse the early trends of Assembly Election results with the team of reporters LIVE:
11.05 am: BJP leads in West Bengal & Assam
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11.00 am: Early trends in Kerala
The United Democratic Front leads in Kerala in 93 seats. Ruling Left Democratic Front ahead in 50 seats.
In terms of party-wise break-up, Congress leads in 61 seats, followed by CPI(M) in 29. IUML leads in 22 seats.
10.55 am: Pinarayi Vijayan trails
Kerala CM Vijayan is trailing in Dharmadam constituency by a gap of 2,812 votes after four out of 15 rounds of counting behind Congress’s V.P. Abdul Rasheed.
10.35 am: Snapshot of top trends
#ElectionResults2026: A look at ECI stats in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala as of 10:15 am
Stay tuned for LIVE UPDATES: https://t.co/rNTzftE92f #PollsWithThePrint pic.twitter.com/803vBMEbrQ
— ThePrintIndia (@ThePrintIndia) May 4, 2026
10.30 am: Vijay leads in Perambur
Actor-politician C. Joseph Vijay is leading in Perambur by a gap of 2,990 votes after one out of 22 rounds of counting, ahead of DMK candidate R.D. Shekar.
#WATCH | Tamil Nadu Elections 2026 | Security increased outside the residence of TVK chief and actor Vijay, in Chennai.
Official EC trends show TVK leading on 68 of the total 234 seats in the state; counting is still underway. pic.twitter.com/LQXfCO1f8S
— ANI (@ANI) May 4, 2026
10.25 am: Stalin, Udhayanidhi trail in early trends
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin trails against V.S. Babu by 1,234 votes in Kolathur after 2 out of 21 rounds of counting.
Deputy CM Udhayanidhi Stalin is also trailing by a small margin of 293 votes after one out of 17 rounds of counting in Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni.
10.15 am: Suvendu trails in Bhabanipur
In Bhabanipur, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee leads against BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari by a gap of 1,996 votes in early trends.
Earlier this morning, Adhikari, who is also contesting in the Nandigram seat, said, “BJP is forming the government.”
10.00 am: Early trends in Jorhat, Assam
Congress’s Gaurav Gogoi trails in Jorhat after two out of 14 rounds of counting. He is pitted against BJP’s Hitendra Nath Goswami, who is leading by a margin of about 1,190 votes in early trends.
9.45 am: What’s brewing in Tamil Nadu?
EC early trends show Vijay’s TVK leading in 33 seats, followed by AIADMK in 33 others. Ruling party DMK trails in third spot with leads in 16 constituencies.
9.30 am: EC early trends show BJP taking lead in Assam
Early trends by the Election Commission of India (ECI) show the BJP leading in 16 seats in Assam and the Congress leading in two. In Tamil Nadu AIADMK is leading in 9 seats, TVK in 5 and DMK in 2. The Congress is leading in 24 seats in Kerala and the Left in 16. In West Bengal the BJP is leading in 3 seats and the TMC in 1 as of 9.30 am.
9.15 am: BJP leading in Gujarat bypoll
Early trends by the EC on assembly by-elections show Harshadbhai Govindbhai Parmar of the BJP ahead in Gujarat’s Umreth; in Karnataka Congress’ Umesh Hullappa Meti is leading in Bagalkot and BJP’s Shrinivasa T. Dasakariyappa in Davanagere South. In Maharashtra, NCP leader Sunetra Pawar has taken the lead in Baramati and BJP’s Akshay Shivajirao Kardile in Rahuri. In Dharmanagar in Tripura, BJP’s Jahar Chakraborty is ahead while counting is still underway in Nagaland’s Koridang as of 9.15 am.
8.50 am: Early trends show tight contest in Bengal, Kerala
Early trends from postal ballots show BJP-led NDA ahead in Assam with leads in 25 seats, while the Congress-led alliance was ahead in seven, according to an ANI report.
In Kerala, a close LDF-UDF contest is ongoing, with both sides inching past 50 leads each.
In Tamil Nadu, the DMK has taken an early lead over the AIADMK-led alliance, while in West Bengal, the BJP and TMC are locked in a close contest.
These are initial postal ballot trends. Election Commission of India (ECI) is yet to declare any official trends.
8.45 am: Counting begins at Puducherry centre
Puducherry Elections 2026: Counting of votes cast through EVMs begins at a counting centre in Puducherry.
#WATCH | Puducherry Elections 2026 | Counting of votes cast through EVMs begins at a counting centre in Puducherry. pic.twitter.com/5JzwbsrUaD
— ANI (@ANI) May 4, 2026
8.30 am: ThePrint reporters bring you a sense of the ground. Watch it LIVE
ThePrint is now live to get a sense of what’s going on in the ground as counting begins. Political Editor DK Singh speaks to reporters Neelam Pandey, Esha Mishra, Moushumi Das Gupta from West Bengal, Sharan Poovanna and Aneesa PA in Kerala, Shweta Tripathi and Deepika Amirapu in Tamil Nadu.
Watch it live:
8.15 am: Bustling Congress HQ in Kerala
The Congress headquarters is Kerala bustling with activity as workers and supporters assembly for a high-stakes verdict. Results being live-streamed at the HQ.
Our correspondent Aneesa PA brings visuals from the ground.
8 am: Puris, sweets being prepared at BJP HQ
BJP prepares for election results in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Puducherry. At its headquarters in New Delhi’s Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg, caterers prepare puris and sweets ahead of counting of votes, set to begin shortly.
#WATCH | Delhi: Poori and sweets being prepared at the BJP Headquarters in Delhi as counting of votes for the elections to the Assemblies of Assam, Keralam, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Puducherry will begin shortly.
Counting of votes for by-polls in seven Assembly… pic.twitter.com/UKdgMXc1rW
— ANI (@ANI) May 4, 2026
The BJP is looking to retain Assam and dislodge TMC and DMK in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu respectively.
7.30 am: Mamata alleges ‘load-shedding being done at BJP’s behest’
In a post on X in the early hours of Monday, Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee called on party workers to remain vigilant. “From Hooghly’s Serampore, Nadia’s Krishnanagar, to Burdwan’s Ausgram, and Kolkata’s Kshudiram Anushilan Kendra, such incidents have come to light where load-shedding is being done in phases. CCTV is being turned off; vehicles are moving in and out of strong rooms,” she said, alleging that this was being done at the behest of the BJP.
সতর্ক থাকুন। পাহারা দিন। রাত জাগুন। অভিযোগ করুন।
বিভিন্ন জায়গা থেকে খবর পাচ্ছি, পরিকল্পিতভাবে লোডশেডিং করে দেওয়া হচ্ছে। হুগলির শ্রীরামপুর, নদীয়ার কৃষ্ণনগর থেকে বর্ধমানের আউশগ্রাম, কলকাতার ক্ষুদিরাম অনুশীলন কেন্দ্রে এরকম ঘটনা সামনে এসেছে যেখানে দফায় দফায় লোডশেডিং করা হচ্ছে,…
— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) May 3, 2026
West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Kumar Agarwal responded to the allegations, telling news agency ANI: “It’s up to the power department. I’ve made all requests to provide uninterrupted power supply. Generators are available too.”
Read more in this report
7.15 am: 3-tier security at counting centres in West Bengal
Ahead of counting of votes, heavy security was visible outside counting centres in Bhabanipur assembly constituency in West Bengal, which witnessed a fierce contest between CM Mamata Banerjee and BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari. Mamata won from this seat in 2011, 2016, and 2021. TMC is eyeing a fourth consecutive term this time.
West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Kumar Agarwal told the media Sunday, “All arrangements are in place. There is a three-tier security arrangement; our RO (Returning Officer), ARO (Assistant Returning Officer), counting agents, and counting supervisors are all ready; they have undergone training multiple times. There is no possibility of any disruption anywhere, everything will happen as per the rules.”
He added that 200 companies of CAPF (central armed police forces) have been deployed at counting centres across the state.
7 am: Counting of votes to begin at 8 am
Counting of votes will begin at 8 am, with postal ballots to be counted first followed by votes from Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
Exit polls have predicted a close contest in West Bengal and Kerala, while betting on the DMK’s return to power in Tamil Nadu and BJP-led NDA’s return to power in Assam and Puducherry. Voting was held in Tamil Nadu, Assam, Kerala, Puducherry in a single phase, while West Bengal went to the polls in two phases.
With the Election Commission of India (ECI) overseeing the process of counting of votes, early trends are expected to emerge before noon.
Also Read: Exit polls bet on LDF upset in Kerala, BJP & DMK return in Assam, Tamil Nadu; edge for BJP in Bengal