Minorities help turn the tide as they consolidate behind UDF

Kozhikode : Near-en bloc consolidation of Muslim and Christian votes along with widespread anti-incumbency sentiments emerged as a decisive force behind UDF’s victory, reshaping Kerala’s political landscape and delivering a crippling setback to LDF.The verdict marks a dramatic return of minority communities — long the social backbone of the UDF since its formation in the 1970s — firmly into its fold, reversing the gains LDF had made among these groups in 2021.The scale of the shift was most visible in the Malabar region. Of the 44 constituencies where Muslims constitute roughly 25–30% or more of the population, UDF won 38 seats.In central and southern Kerala, too, the trend held: UDF secured eight out of 10 constituencies where Muslim voters wield significant influence. With Muslims accounting for about 27% of Kerala’s population as per the 2011 Census — and now estimated at nearly 30% — the consolidation proved electorally decisive.There has been a deepseated disenchantment within the Muslim community, which increasingly views the CPM as having recalibrated its political compass towards majority appeasement and accommodation of majoritarian policy positions.