Caste factor, cadre base helped AIADMK in Coimbatore region

DMK candidates defeated in all 10 Assembly constituencies

Despite mounting a sustained and vociferous attack on the AIADMK’s prominent faces, the DMK has drawn a blank in the Coimbatore region. Its candidates were defeated in all 10 Assembly seats including Singanallur, the lone constituency it had won in 2016. This is the second time in a decade the party, which is set to form the next government, is facing such a debacle. The DMK leadership had gone all out to target outgoing Local Administration Minister S.P. Velumani and Deputy Speaker Pollachi V.Jayaraman. Yet voters gave the AIADMK a sweep. AIADMK spokesperson Kovai K. Selvaraj said the sweep was an endorsement that the voters did not believe the DMK’s charges. He told The Hindu that the party’s strong cadre base helped it win. Claiming that the AIADMK has around 4.7 lakh members in Coimbatore district, he asserted that their groundwork led to the victory.