However, CPM Ernakulam district secretary CN Mohanan said the result was unexpected. The verdict is accepted. Admits failure. Incredible. He said he would look into the defeat.
Out of 10 postal votes, Uma Thomas got 6 postal 3 votes, Joe Joseph got 2 votes and AN Radhakrishnan got 2 votes. Three votes invalid.
The final result may be out by 11 p.m. The voting machine was opened at 7.30 am in the presence of the candidates and the representatives of the political parties. There are 21 tables set up for counting votes.
The new MLA of Thrikkakara will be known when the votes cast by 1,35,342 voters in 239 booths are counted. 21 voting machines will be counted in one round. By the end of eleven rounds the picture will be clear.
Booths in the Edappally area of the Kochi Corporation will be counted first. The picture will be clear as soon as the votes in these booths are counted. The counting will pass through Palarivattom, Padivattom and Anchumana areas. By the fifth round, the booths within the corporation limits up to Vytila will be counted.
If Uma’s lead crosses 5,000 following 5 rounds of counting, the UDF can secure victory. If the majority is less than 3,000, it is likely that competition will be fierce. Even if Joe Joseph takes a slight lead, it will be an indication that the Left Front will win. In that case, the votes in Thrikkakara Municipality will be decisive. The counting of votes in Thrikkakara will start from the eighth round. In the event of an in-and-out contest, both the candidates will be almost identical following passing the 9th, 10th and 11th rounds of counting of votes in Thrikkakara West and Central regions.
If so, the Left Front candidate can hopefully advance to the last four rounds. Count the Thrikkakara East region, the center of left power, at this stage as well. The left and right camps respond that victory is assured even following the final round of calculations.
Despite the tumultuous campaign, the lowest turnout was recorded in Thrikkakara this time. Leading campaigns by the Chief Minister and the Leader of the Opposition and the clear rainy weather were expected to bring the trend to a record high on the morning of polling day. But by the time the polls were over, all the calculations were wrong. It was in the Kochi Corporation that the fronts lost hope compared to the Thrikkakara municipality. In many booths in the corporation, the turnout was less than 50 per cent. Many of these are UDF strongholds. But the UDF says that 50 per cent of the booths, which normally do not even reach 40 per cent, are gaining ground and the votes cast in these booths will be even higher.
Most of the polling booths in Thrikkakara municipality recorded good polling. There are polling booths which have crossed 75%. The UDF and LDF are hoping for polling in Thrikkakara Central, East and West. The UDF hopes that the Twenty20 vote, which was strong last time in the East, will stand this time. With the turnout low, the BJP’s vote share in the direct battle between the UDF and the LDF is crucial.
If all goes well, the CPM will win by a narrow margin. The Left Front estimates that it will reach 4,000. Although victory is assured, the UDF does not expect a large majority. Leaders cannot guarantee that PT Thomas will get the majority he got in the last assembly elections. Despite the promise of Twenty20 votes, the leaders are not confident in the low turnout to ensure that the majority will go above 10,000.