AIADMK to conduct internal survey for selection of 2024 LS candidates

Chennai, Sep 24 (IANS) The AIADMK will be commissioning a nationally renowned polling agency to get an idea on the candidates the party could field in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

With the fight between the state president of BJP, K. Annamalai and the AIADMK leadership at its peak, the party does not want to field poor candidates in the next general elections.

The party also wants to assess its strengths and weaknesses in all constituencies of the state and to bargain regarding the sharing of seats. While the BJP contested 5 seats in the 2019 general elections in alliance with the AIADMK, it could not win any seats. In the 2021 Assembly election, the BJP contested 20 seats in the AIADMK alliance and won 4 seats. it is to be noted that there are 239 Assembly seats in Tamil Nadu.

The party, according to sources, is of the opinion that a strong anti-incumbency wave is in place in Tamil Nadu and that the DMK-led front will lose seats in the 2024 general elections. However the DMK president and Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M.K. Stalin has been time and again communicating to his cadres to work hard for a clean sweep in the 2019 general elections.

The idea of the survey, according to AIADMK insiders, is not only to shortlist a few candidates for each of the Lok Sabha constituencies but also to assess the strength of the NDA alliance in Tamil Nadu.

With the AIADMK leaders openly coming out against the BJP state president, K. Annamalai, the party wants to get feedback from the grassroots on the public response to the spat. The AIADMK also wants to retain its turf even though a political alliance is in place in the state with the BJP.

The party also wants to ensure that it has not lost its strength in the strongholds of South Tamil Nadu districts where the Thevar community -- which is a traditional vote bank of AIADMK -- is strong.

However, after the expulsion of former Chief Minister and party coordinator O. Panneerselvam, former interim general secretary, V.K. Shashikala and her nephew and former party MLA, TTV Dhinakaran from AIADMK, there is a sustained campaign that the AIADMK has lost its support base among the Thevars. It is to be noted that all the three leaders are from the Thevar community.

Highly placed sources in AIADMK told IANS that the survey will commence in October and continue for three to four weeks. A detailed micro-level study of each constituency will be carried out as also about the local leaders of the AIADMK who are under consideration.