Vilavancode Assembly bypoll | Tharahai Cuthbert of Congress wins

Tharahai Cuthbert wins Vilavancode by-election for Congress with 39,128-vote margin, reflecting changing national trends.

Tharahai Cuthbert (47) of the Indian National Congress was declared winner of the Vilavancode Assembly Constituency by-election.

Securing a total of 88,875 votes, Ms. Cuthbert won by a margin of 39,128 votes. V.S .Nanthini of BJP polled 49,747 votes, R. Jemini of Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) was third with 7,917 votes and U. Rani of the AIADMK secured 5,155 votes.

Ms. Cuthbert was in the lead from the beginning, when round one of counting began. The segment, with a total number of 2,37,382 voters: 1,17,694 men, 1,19,685 women and 3 others was declared vacant following the defection of MLA S. Vijayadharani from the Congress to the BJP. Following this, the constituency held a by-poll. conducted along with the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in April.

Since 1971, the Congress has won this Assembly constituency seven times and the CPI(M), five times. Ms. Vijayadharani won from here for three consecutive terms: 2011, 2016 and 2021.

Ms. Cuthbert, hailing from a Roman Catholic fishermen community, said her win was a reflection of the nation’s changing tendency towards secularism and democracy. Further, she extended her wishes to her party member Vijay Vasanth, who was leading in Kanniyakumari LS constituency.