Udf Kerala leads as Kerala vote count starts May 4
udf kerala opened the 2026 Assembly count on May 4 with postal ballots first, and initial trends showed the Congress-led United Democratic Front ahead. Strongrooms holding the electronic voting machines were opened around 6.30 am, with Election Commission observers, security personnel and candidate representatives present.
Kalamassery strongroom delay
The count covered votes cast in the April 9 election across Kerala’s 140 constituencies, with 140 counting centres operating in 43 locations. Voter turnout was updated to 79.63% after postal votes were included, adding another number to a race already being watched across the state.
Tension arose at the strongroom in Cochin University of Science and Technology in Kalamassery when the key to the facility holding the EVMs for the Kalamassery assembly constituency went missing. Officials had to break open the strongroom around 8.30 am, and an official said, "Everything is going smoothly now," after the door was opened.
LDF, UDF and BJP contest
The contest is between the ruling CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front and the Opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front, with the National Democratic Alliance led by the BJP also a contender in several key segments. For voters watching their constituencies, the first postal count and the early machine-vote trends are the first signals of where the final result may move.
The practical next step is the full count across the 140 centres, which will turn early trends into seat-by-seat results. Until those tallies settle, the first lead belongs to the side showing ahead in the opening round, while Kalamassery’s delay serves as the only operational glitch named in the count so far.
