TN Assembly polls: DMK planning more organisational revamp to win 200 seats

Chennai, Feb 15 (IANS) The ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in Tamil Nadu is undergoing a significant organisational restructuring to strengthen its presence ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.

The party has set an ambitious target of winning 200 out of the 234 Assembly seats in the state.

The DMK has replaced four district secretaries to enhance efficiency and grassroots engagement and may go for more organisational revamp.

District secretaries were replaced in Thanjavur South, Tirunelveli Central, Nilgiris, and Tiruvallur East.

In Thanjavur South, sitting MLA and party district secretary, K. Annadurai has been replaced by Palanivel while in Nilgiris district, former MLA B.M. Mubarak has been succeeded by K.M. Raju.

In Tirunelveli Central former minister, T. P. M. Mohideenkhan has been replaced by sitting MLA M. Abdul Wahab while in Tiruvallur East, T. J. S. Govindarajan MLA has been replaced by M. S. K. Rameshraj.

Chief Minister and DMK President M. K. Stalin defended these changes, saying that the restructuring aims to strengthen the party, not eliminate internal dissent.

The new appointments, he said, were made after extensive consultations with local leadership to ensure the party is fully prepared for the 2026 elections.

It may be recalled that the DMK has appointed full-time representatives for each Assembly constituency, who report directly to a dedicated election cell at the party's headquarters, Anna Arivalayam.

The election cell, led by Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, includes senior leaders such as party Organising Secretary R. S. Bharathy and Ministers Thangam Thenarasu, E.V. Velu, and K.N. Nehru.

The role of these full-time representatives is to directly engage with the public and promote the state government's welfare schemes. Their daily reports on public reception and impact are reviewed every three days by the Udhayanidhi Stalin-led team, which gathers insights with the help of a professional data analysis team.

To assess the effectiveness of its outreach, the DMK is conducting monthly opinion polls in collaboration with reputed national agencies.

The party is particularly focused on constituencies where the opposition, including the AIADMK and PMK, showed strength in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, despite failing to secure any seats.

The party has identified Western and Northern Tamil Nadu as priority areas, as these regions have historically been the strongholds of the AIADMK and PMK.

The DMK leadership is intensifying its efforts to ensure that government welfare schemes reach every household, aiming to consolidate voter support in these areas.

A senior party leader confirmed that the DMK is leaving no stone unturned in its preparation for the 2026 elections.