EC announces election schedule for 4 states, Puducherry: 824 seats, 17.4 crore voters across 5 regions, code in force

The Election Commission of India on Sunday announced the full assembly election schedule for Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam, Kerala and the union territory of Puducherry. Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar made the announcement at a press conference in New Delhi, flanked by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi .

"A total of 17.4 crore voters are eligible to vote in elections to five assemblies with 824 constituencies ," Kumar said. He noted that this voter base is equivalent to the combined populations of Australia, France, South Africa, Germany and Canada. Elections will be conducted at 2.19 lakh polling stations with 25 lakh election officials on duty. Representatives of election bodies from 20 countries will visit the poll-bound states to observe what Kumar called India's "Festival of Democracy."

The poll schedule is as follows. Assam (126 seats), Kerala (140 seats) and Puducherry (30 elected seats plus 3 nominated by the Centre, totalling 33) will vote on April 9 in a single phase. Tamil Nadu (234 seats) votes on April 23 in a single phase. West Bengal (294 seats) votes in two phases on April 23 and April 29 . The 824 elected seats break down as West Bengal 294, Tamil Nadu 234, Kerala 140, Assam 126 and Puducherry 30. Counting across all five assemblies takes place on May 4 . The assembly terms expire between May and June 2026, with West Bengal ending May 7, Tamil Nadu May 10, Assam May 20, Kerala May 23 and Puducherry June 15, making fresh mandates constitutionally unavoidable.

West Bengal has historically required phased polling owing to its large electorate, law and order sensitivities and the need for adequate Central force deployment, a pattern continuing with Sunday's announcement.

The elections test several entrenched governments. M K Stalin's DMK faces Tamil Nadu's verdict since May 2021. Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress defends West Bengal, in power since 2011. Pinarayi Vijayan's Left Democratic Front faces Kerala's electorate, in power since 2016. Himanta Biswa Sarma leads the BJP in Assam, in power since 2016. N Rangasamy of the All India N R Congress , governing Puducherry in alliance with the BJP since 2021, contests the UT's 30 elected seats.