Pinarayi Vijayan drops ‘CM’ from bio ahead of Kerala assembly results
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Pinarayi Vijayan drops ‘CM’ from bio ahead of Kerala assembly results")
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan Photograph: (ANI)
The changed bio of Vijayan now reads "Polit Bureau Member, Communist Party of India (Marxist)".
Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan updated his social media bio on Sunday (May 03), a day before the counting of votes for the Kerala Assembly elections, dropping the “Chief Minister” designation and identifying himself as a Polit Bureau Member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
The changed bio of Vijayan now reads "Polit Bureau Member, Communist Party of India (Marxist)".
The move comes as Vijayan seeks a third consecutive term in the state, after securing comfortable victories in both 2016 and 2021.
Despite the state being considered a Left bastion, the 2026 contest has seen a stronger challenge from both the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
The UDF fielded V P Abdul Rasheed against the Chief Minister, while the BJP nominated K Ranjith for the seat. Vijayan had won the constituency with a significant margin in previous elections, including securing nearly 60 per cent of the vote share in 2021.
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Exit poll projections, however, indicate a possible shift in the political landscape. Several surveys have predicted an advantage for the Congress-led alliance. Axis My India projected the UDF winning between 78 and 90 seats in the 140-member Assembly, while the ruling Left Democratic Front is expected to secure between 49 and 62 seats. Other agencies, including People’s Pulse and JVC, also indicated a lead for the UDF, with varying seat ranges, while the NDA is projected to win a limited number of seats.
Kerala went to the polls in a single phase on April 9, recording a voter turnout of over 78 per cent. The 2021 election marked a departure from the state’s pattern of alternating governments, with the LDF returning to power and winning 99 seats.
The results for Kerala will be declared on May 4, along with outcomes from elections in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry.
