When he became chief minister for a second consecutive time in 2021, Pinarayi Vijayan broke a 40-year jinx that had seen his CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) alternate in power. Riding its globally feted management of the COVID-19 pandemic, it dashed the UDF hopes of turning its 19-1 victory in the 2019 general election into local political currency. The LDF even upped its take-home, from 91 to 99 seats in a 140-strong assembly. Kerala finds itself at the same crossroads today—the state again voted overwhelmingly UDF (18 seats) in the 2024 Lok Sabha election. The Congress-led Opposition also delivered a body blow to the LDF in the 2025 local body elections and even wrested the Nilambur assembly seat in a bypoll last year. Can Pinarayi again manage a winning return of serve? Or will 2026 be the end of the road for the 80-year-old CPI(M) strongman? If it’s bad news that comes on May 4, it will also dim the lights on the Left in its last remaining bastion in the country.
