Exit polls 2026 LIVE: DMK alliance projected to win in Tamil Nadu, BJP in Assam

Assam Assembly’s seniormost MLA Patowary takes oath as pro-tem Speaker

Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya congratulates BJP’s Chandramohan Patowary after administering the oath for the post of pro-tem Speaker of the newly constituted 16th Assam Legislature Assembly, on May 15, 2026. Photo: X/@Laxmanacharya54

Seniormost MLA of the 16th Assam Assembly, Chandra Mohan Patowary, was on Friday (May 15, 2026) sworn in as the pro-tem Speaker by Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya.Mr. Acharya administered the oath to the BJP leader and former cabinet minister at a ceremony held at Lok Bhavan here."Today, at Lok Bhavan, Assam, I administered the oath of office as the Pro-tem Speaker of the newly constituted 16th Assam Legislative Assembly to Shri Chandra Mohan Patowary," the Governor said in a post on X."I am confident that drawing upon his vast experience and commitment to democratic values, the initial proceedings of the Assembly will be conducted with complete constitutional dignity," Mr. Acharya added."Honoured to have taken oath as Pro-tem Speaker of 16th @AssamAssembly, administered by Hon’ble Governor of Assam Shri @Laxmanacharya54 Ji at Lok Bhavan today," the seventh-time MLA said in a post on the social media site.Mr. Patowary was first elected to the Assembly from Dharmapur constituency in 1985 as an Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) candidate. He represented the constituency six times, including twice as a BJP legislator since 2016.He has been elected to the new Assembly from Tihu constituency, created during the 2023 delimitation exercise, which includes parts of the erstwhile Dharmapur seat.As pro-tem Speaker, Mr. Patowary will administer the oath to newly elected MLAs during the first session of the Assembly beginning on May 21.The four-day session will continue till May 26, with the legislators to be sworn-in on the first day, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had said earlier.The former Cabinet Minister will be responsible for the conduct of business till the election of the new Speaker.The NDA had announced senior BJP legislator and ex-minister Ranjeet Kumar Dass as its candidate for the Speaker’s post, a position held by him initially when the first saffron party-led government had come to power in the State in 2016.The NDA retained power for a third consecutive term with a two-thirds majority in the recently concluded Assembly polls. The BJP won 82 seats, while its allies AGP and Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) secured 10 seats each in the 126-member House. Published - May 15, 2026 03:13 pm IST

Assam Assembly’s seniormost MLA Patowary takes oath as pro-tem Speaker

DMK explores backing AIADMK, Tamil Nadu Governor tells Vijay he hasn’t established majority

The post-election political climate in Tamil Nadu turned upside down on Thursday (May 7, 2026) after the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leadership began toying with the idea of extending outside support to its arch-rival, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam — a prospect that would have been unthinkable till a week ago.Govt. formation LIVE updates - May 7In a related development, the Lok Bhavan said Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar invited Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam president C. Joseph Vijay and “explained that the requisite majority support in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, essential for forming the government, has not been established.”While Mr. Vijay and senior party leaders reached out to the DMK’s allies — the Communist Party of India, the CPI(M) and the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, which have two seats each — DMK president M.K. Stalin too is learnt to have broached with these three parties the idea of backing an AIADMK-led government.Now clearly, the three parties hold the key to any further churn in Tamil Nadu politics. In fact, their combined support is crucial for both the TVK and the AIADMK to form a government.Currently, the TVK with the support of the five elected candidates of the Congress, effectively has 112 seats in the 234-member House after accounting for the legal mandate for Mr. Vijay to resign from one of his two seats.Should the AIADMK aspire to form a government without the support of the BJP’s lone representative, it would require the support of its other allies Pattali Makkal Katchi (4) and Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (1), in addition to that of the DMK (59), the Indian Union Muslim League (2), and the six seats of the CPI-CPI(M)-VCK combine. It would give the alliance 120 seats.Mr. Stalin, the outgoing Chief Minister who had initially rejected the proposal to back the AIADMK, reportedly yielded to pressure from second-line party leaders and invited CPI(M) State secretary P. Shanmugam, CPI State secretary M. Veerapandian, and VCK leader Thol. Thirumavalavan to his house for discussions. The DMK would not join the government, but the allies are free to take a decision on joining the government, he reportedly told them.‘Pressure from senior DMK leaders’Sources said some senior DMK leaders, including three senior outgoing Ministers, pressured Mr. Stalin to consider the option of backing the AIADMK. “Once Mr. Vijay forms the government, it will be difficult to unseat him for the next 10 to 15 years. The Dravidian parties have to take a decision to prevent such an eventuality,” a senior DMK leader said.The argument within the DMK is that, since Mr. Stalin would not be in the Assembly, the DMK and the AIADMK could evolve a common minimum programme and jointly run the government. It is against this backdrop that Mr. Stalin invited the Left leaders and Mr. Thirumavalavan for consultations. But, Mr. Stalin is learnt to have told them their stand would be his stand as well.While the two Communist parties sought time, stating their State committee meetings scheduled for Friday would take a final decision, Mr. Thirumavalavan indicated that he would follow the Communists’ stand.Meanwhile, a meeting of the newly elected DMK legislators held at Anna Arivalayam empowered Mr. Stalin to take an appropriate decision in light of the fractured electoral verdict, which failed to give any single party a majority.“As the State is not ready for another election, our objective is to ensure a stable government. At the same time, we are under compulsion to prevent communal forces that could disturb Dravidian ideals from gaining a foothold,” a resolution adopted at the meeting stated.The resolution further said that Tamil Nadu’s growth trajectory could be sustained only if the welfare schemes implemented by the DMK government over the last five years continued without interruption.“The meeting unanimously empowers the party leader to take an emergency decision, taking into consideration the prevailing political and

Exit polls 2026 LIVE: DMK alliance projected to win in Tamil Nadu, BJP in Assam

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Tamil Nadu recorded a historic 85.1% voter turnout in the Assembly polls, while Puducherry led with 91.23%. Assam saw a turnout of 85.91%, and Kerala registered 78.27%. Updated

April 29, 2026 07:42 pm IST

A polling official marks a voter's finger with indelible ink during the second and final phase of the West Bengal Assembly elections, at a polling station in Kolkata, Wednesday, April 29, 2026.

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PTI

Several exit polls on Wednesday (April 29, 2026) predicted a thumping victory for the BJP in Assam and a clear edge for the party over the ruling TMC in West Bengal, while projecting a return of the DMK government in Tamil Nadu and a comeback by the Congress-led UDF in Kerala after 10 years.The pollsters also forecast a return to power for the AINRC-led NDA government in Puducherry. Earlier, Tamil Nadu recorded a historic 85.1% voter turnout in the Assembly polls, while Puducherry led with 91.23%. Assam saw a turnout of 85.91%, and Kerala registered 78.27%.The counting of votes for all five Assemblies - West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala and Assam - will be taken up on May 4.Follow the live updates hereApril 29, 2026 19:41 NDA ahead in Puducherry, DMK-Congress trails in projections; TVK likely to win 2–4 seatsIn Puducherry, Axis My India predicted 16-20 seats for the NDA and 6-8 for the DMK-Congress. It said the TVK is likely to get 2-4 seats in the assembly. There are 30 elected seats in Puducherry.-PTIApril 29, 2026 19:38 UDF ahead in contest with LDF in Kerala; NDA marginal presenceIn Kerala, Axis My India forecast that the UDF would get 78-90 seats, LDF 49-62 and NDA 0-3.People’s Pulse predicted that the Congress-led UDF would get 75-85 seats, the LDF 55-65 and the NDA 0-3.Matrize forecast 60-65 seats for the LDF, 70-75 seats for the UDF and 3-5 seats for the NDA. Kerala Assembly has a total of 140 seats, with the magic mark being 71.-PTIApril 29, 2026 19:28 Exit polls project return of Stalin-led alliance in Tamil NaduIn their projections via exit polls, the pollsters on Wednesday projected the incumbent CM M.K. Stalin-led Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) alliance winning Tamil Nadu in the 2026 Assembly elections.The exit poll by People Pulse has projected 125-145 Assembly seats in DMK’s corner, while placing Nationalist Democratic Alliance-backed (NDA) All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) with 65 to 80 seats of the total 234 Assembly seats in the State.Meanwhile, Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) is being projected to win merely two to six Assembly seats in Tamil Nadu as per People Pulse.According to exit poll projections by Matrize, DMK and allies are winning Tamil Nadu Assembly polls with 122-132, while AIADMK and allies are projected to win on 80 to 100 seats.Meanwhile, as per Matrize, TVK is projected to zero to six Assembly seats in Tamil Nadu.The exit poll by P-MARQ has projected 125-145 Assembly seats in DMK’s corner, while placing AIADMK with 60 to 70 seats of the total 234 Assembly seats in the State.Meanwhile, Vijay’s TVK is being projected to win merely one to six Assembly seats in Tamil Nadu as per P-MARQ.-ANIApril 29, 2026 19:19 Exit Polls project BJP edge in West Bengal, predict close contest with TMCIn their projections via exit polls, the pollsters project Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) winning West Bengal in the 2026 Assembly elections, whose polling concluded this evening.The exit poll by Chanakya Strategies has projected 150-160 Assembly seats in the BJP’s corner, while placing Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) with 130-140 seats of the total 294 Assembly seats in the State.Meanwhile, other parties are being projected to win six to 10 Assembly seats in West Bengal as per Chanakya Strategies.According to exit poll projections by Matrize, the BJP is winning the West Bengal Assembly polls with 146-161, while TMC is projected to win 125 to 140 seats.-ANIApril 29, 2026 19:16 Exit polls predict BJP-led NDA victory in AssamBJP-led NDA is po

Exit polls 2026 LIVE: DMK alliance projected to win in Tamil Nadu, BJP in Assam

Assam Assembly’s seniormost MLA Patowary takes oath as pro-tem Speaker

Assam Assembly’s seniormost MLA Patowary takes oath as pro-tem Speaker

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