Andhra Pradesh municipal election results: TDP sweeps, wins Pulivendula
The TDP-led alliance swept Andhra Pradesh's civic polls and took Pulivendula, Jagan Mohan Reddy's home turf. The tallies and why the result matters.
The TDP-led alliance has swept Andhra Pradesh’s urban local body elections, and its biggest prize was symbolic: Pulivendula, the home constituency of opposition YSRCP chief Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy. Counting took place on Tuesday, 3 November, two days after the vote.
The ruling coalition, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP with Pawan Kalyan’s Jana Sena and the BJP, led in 10 of the 13 municipal corporations and 62 of 83 municipalities in the trends published during counting. The YSRCP had not taken the lead in a single municipal corporation.
The results so far
By Tuesday evening, declared results gave:
- TDP: 41 municipalities
- Jana Sena: 14
- BJP: 3
- YSRCP: Nandikotkur
- Adoni: won by Swapna, a Jana Sena rebel
Independents were ahead in three municipalities in the earlier trends. Final figures for the corporations, including Visakhapatnam (GVMC), were still being compiled.
Why Pulivendula is the headline
Pulivendula in Kadapa district has been the Reddy family’s base for decades. This time the alliance won 17 of the 20 wards that went to the polls, and 37 wards in all once unopposed seats are counted. Its chairperson candidate, Geetha Kumari, won by 13,875 votes. The YSRCP won only three wards.
The vote in numbers
- 92 urban local bodies: 13 municipal corporations and 79 municipalities and nagar panchayats
- Polling on Sunday, 1 November; turnout 60.96%
- About 60 lakh voters; more than 10,000 candidates for councillor and corporator seats and 520 for mayor and chairperson
- Counting at 138 centres, delayed in Prakasam and Bapatla districts because of Cyclone Murasu
The YSRCP contested all 13 mayoral posts and all 70 contested chairperson posts, so the result is a clear test of strength rather than a walkover.
Why it matters
Civic polls decide who runs roads, water and drainage in towns, but in Andhra they are also read as a verdict on the state government halfway through its term. A sweep this wide, including Jagan’s own backyard, strengthens Naidu’s hand and keeps the coalition with the BJP, a partner in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s national government, firmly together.
The next step is the indirect election of mayors and chairpersons by the newly elected councillors.
