# Karaikudi Assembly constituency

10°04′N 78°47′E﻿ / ﻿10.07°N 78.78°E﻿ / 10.07; 78.78
Karaikudi is a state assembly constituency in Sivaganga district in Tamil Nadu. Most successful party: INC (five times). It is one of the 234 State Legislative Assembly Constituencies in Tamil Nadu in India.

## History

Karaikudi is a part of Karaikudi Assembly constituency and it elects a member to the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly once every five years. From the 1977 elections, All India Anna Dravid Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) won the assembly seat four times (in the 1977, 1984, 1991 and 2009 elections), two times by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK, 1980 and 1989), once by Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC, 1996) and three by the Indian National Congress (INC) won during the 2006, 2016 and 2019 elections. The current member of the legislative assembly is S. Mangudi from the INC.
Karaikudi is a part of Sivaganga Lok Sabha constituency. The current Member of Parliament from the constituency is Karti Chidambaram from the INC.

## Members of Legislative Assembly
### Madras State

| Year | Winner | Party |
| 1952 | Chockalingam Chettiar | Indian National Congress |
| 1957 | M. A. Muthiah Chettiar | Indian National Congress |
| 1962 | Saw Ganesan | Swatantra Party |
| 1967 | S. Meiyappan | Swatantra Party |

### Tamil Nadu

| Year | Winner | Party |
| 1971 | C. T. Chidambaram | Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam |
| 1977 | P. Kaliyappan | All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam |
| 1980 | C. T. Chidambaram | Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam |
| 1984 | S. P. Durairasu | All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam |
| 1989 | R. M. Narayanan | Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam |
| 1991 | M. Karpagam | All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam |
| 1996 | N. Sundaram | Tamil Maanila Congress |
| 2001 | H. Raja | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| 2006 | N. Sundaram | Indian National Congress |
| 2011 | Cholan C. T. Palanichamy | All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam |
| 2016 | K. R. Ramasamy | Indian National Congress |
| 2021 | S. Mangudi | Indian National Congress |

## Election results

Vote share of winning candidates :
| 2021 | 2021 | 35.75% | 35.75% |
| 2016 | 2016 | 46.40% | 46.40% |
| 2011 | 2011 | 51.01% | 51.01% |
| 2006 | 2006 | 48.70% | 48.70% |
| 2001 | 2001 | 48.40% | 48.40% |
| 1996 | 1996 | 62.98% | 62.98% |
| 1991 | 1991 | 65.68% | 65.68% |
| 1989 | 1989 | 41.24% | 41.24% |
| 1984 | 1984 | 48.98% | 48.98% |
| 1980 | 1980 | 51.78% | 51.78% |
| 1977 | 1977 | 32.03% | 32.03% |
| 1971 | 1971 | 59.82% | 59.82% |
| 1967 | 1967 | 58.73% | 58.73% |
| 1962 | 1962 | 49.31% | 49.31% |
| 1957 | 1957 | 48.34% | 48.34% |
| 1952 | 1952 | 58.81% | 58.81% |

### 2021

2021 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | INC | S. Mangudi | 75,954 | 35.75 | −10.64 |
| | BJP | H. Raja | 54,365 | 25.59 | +23.12 |
| | AMMK | Dherpoki V. Pandi | 44,864 | 21.12 | |
| | NTK | N. Durai Manickam | 23,872 | 11.24 | 8.58 |
| | MNM | S. Rajkumar | 8,351 | 3.93 | |
| | NOTA | Nota | 1,349 | 0.63 | −0.70 |
| | PT | B. Vanitha | 702 | 0.33 | |
| | BSP | N. Baluswamy | 652 | 0.31 | −0.49 |
| | Independent | N. Meenal | 548 | 0.26 | |
| | Independent | K. Velu | 504 | 0.24 | |
| | Independent | M. Naina Mohamed | 416 | 0.20 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 21,589 | 10.16 | +1.08 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 212,456 | 67.01 | −3.28 |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 304 | 0.14 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 317,041 | | |
| | INC hold | INC hold | Swing | -10.64 | |

### 2016

2016 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | INC | K. R. Ramasamy | 93,419 | 46.40 | 6.58 |
| | AIADMK | Karpagam Ilango | 75,136 | 37.32 | −13.70 |
| | MDMK | S. Sevanthiappan | 14,279 | 7.09 | |
| | NTK | S. Parimalam | 5,344 | 2.65 | |
| | BJP | V. Muthulakshmi | 4,969 | 2.47 | −0.02 |
| | NOTA | None Of The Above | 2,688 | 1.33 | |
| | BSP | K. Saravanan | 1,601 | 0.80 | −0.55 |
| | PMK | P. R. Duraipandi | 897 | 0.45 | |
| | NMK | R. Rajkumar | 723 | 0.36 | |
| | Independent | K. Rabiq Raja | 547 | 0.27 | |
| | Independent | Tamilkarthick | 471 | 0.23 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 18,283 | 9.08 | −2.12 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 201,355 | 70.30 | −4.08 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 286,435 | | |
| | INC gain from AIADMK | INC gain from AIADMK | Swing | -4.62 | |

### 2011

2011 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | AIADMK | C. T. Palanichamy | 86,104 | 51.01 | 14.67 |
| | INC | K. R. Ramasamy | 67,204 | 39.81 | −8.89 |
| | BJP | V. Chidambaram | 4,194 | 2.48 | −0.40 |
| | IJK | S. Asaithambi | 3,895 | 2.31 | |
| | BSP | N. Baluswamy | 2,272 | 1.35 | |
| | Independent | R. Rajkumar | 1,728 | 1.02 | |
| | JMM | S. Anandhakumar | 999 | 0.59 | |
| | Independent | R. Karasingam | 885 | 0.52 | |
| | Independent | K. Rabiq Raja | 772 | 0.46 | |
| | Independent | U. Maheswaran | 744 | 0.44 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 18,900 | 11.20 | −1.16 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 226,934 | 74.38 | 11.37 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 168,797 | | |
| | AIADMK gain from INC | AIADMK gain from INC | Swing | 2.31 | |

### 2006

2006 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | INC | N. Sundaram | 64,013 | 48.70 | |
| | AIADMK | O. L. Venkatachalam | 47,767 | 36.34 | |
| | DMDK | D. Baskaran | 13,094 | 9.96 | |
| | BJP | N. K. Raman | 3,787 | 2.88 | −45.52 |
| | Independent | H. Mohamed Hanifa | 1,833 | 1.39 | |
| | Independent | P. L. Alagappan | 938 | 0.71 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 16,246 | 12.36 | 10.88 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 131,432 | 63.01 | 3.88 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 208,583 | | |
| | INC gain from BJP | INC gain from BJP | Swing | 0.30 | |

### 2001

2001 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | BJP | H. Raja | 54,093 | 48.40 | 47.74 |
| | TMC(M) | S. P. Udayappan | 52,442 | 46.93 | |
| | Independent | S. Venkatesan | 2,937 | 2.63 | |
| | Independent | K. Rajendran | 1,280 | 1.15 | |
| | Independent | Ar. Periasamy | 1,001 | 0.90 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 1,651 | 1.48 | −39.80 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 111,753 | 59.13 | −4.08 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 189,003 | | |
| | BJP gain from TMC(M) | BJP gain from TMC(M) | Swing | -14.58 | |

### 1996

1996 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | TMC(M) | N. Sundaram | 76,888 | 62.98 | |
| | AIADMK | M. Raju | 26,504 | 21.71 | −43.97 |
| | MDMK | K. R. Asokan | 10,055 | 8.24 | |
| | Independent | Karuppiah Pazha | 5,378 | 4.41 | |
| | Independent | C. Muthiah | 1,904 | 1.56 | |
| | BJP | R. M. Alagappan | 810 | 0.66 | −1.25 |
| | Independent | M. Abdul Latif | 178 | 0.15 | |
| | Independent | S. J. Simon Paul Jayasingh | 155 | 0.13 | |
| | Independent | S. P. Perumal | 151 | 0.12 | |
| | Independent | K. A. V. Samlappan | 53 | 0.04 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 50,384 | 41.27 | 6.28 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 122,076 | 63.21 | 3.02 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 200,521 | | |
| | TMC(M) gain from AIADMK | TMC(M) gain from AIADMK | Swing | -2.70 | |

### 1991

1991 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | AIADMK | M. Karpagam | 71,912 | 65.68 | 46.49 |
| | DMK | C. T. Chidambaram | 33,601 | 30.69 | −10.55 |
| | BJP | N. G. Karunakaran | 2,090 | 1.91 | 0.63 |
| | Independent | S. Abdul Rahman | 651 | 0.59 | |
| | Independent | O. M. Ganesan | 335 | 0.31 | |
| | Independent | V. Arunachalam | 248 | 0.23 | |
| | Independent | S. Rajendran | 216 | 0.20 | |
| | Independent | K. Nagalingam | 200 | 0.18 | |
| | Independent | M. Karpagam | 167 | 0.15 | |
| | Independent | P. Vairamuthu | 63 | 0.06 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 38,311 | 34.99 | 12.94 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 109,483 | 60.19 | −7.71 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 188,714 | | |
| | AIADMK gain from DMK | AIADMK gain from DMK | Swing | 24.44 | |

### 1989

1989 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | DMK | R. M. Narayanan | 45,790 | 41.24 | 2.17 |
| | AIADMK | S. P. Durairasu | 21,305 | 19.19 | −29.79 |
| | Independent | S. Shanmugam | 19,856 | 17.88 | |
| | AIADMK | K. Geeva Ram Anandh | 18,573 | 16.73 | −32.25 |
| | Independent | V. Arujothi | 1,672 | 1.51 | |
| | TNC(K) | V. Gopal | 1,658 | 1.49 | |
| | BJP | A. Rasa | 1,416 | 1.28 | |
| | Independent | C. Sekar | 366 | 0.33 | |
| | Independent | Rasendran | 205 | 0.18 | |
| | Independent | Nachiappan Kr | 188 | 0.17 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 24,485 | 22.05 | 12.15 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 111,029 | 67.90 | −5.16 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 166,611 | | |
| | DMK gain from AIADMK | DMK gain from AIADMK | Swing | -7.74 | |

### 1984

1984 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | AIADMK | S. P. Durairasu | 47,760 | 48.98 | 1.54 |
| | DMK | C. T. Chidambaram | 38,101 | 39.08 | −12.70 |
| | Independent | K. R. Boominathan | 11,324 | 11.61 | |
| | Independent | M. Gunasekaran | 319 | 0.33 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 9,659 | 9.91 | 5.58 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 97,504 | 73.05 | 5.10 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 141,404 | | |
| | AIADMK gain from DMK | AIADMK gain from DMK | Swing | -2.80 | |

### 1980

1980 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | DMK | C. T. Chidambaram | 46,541 | 51.78 | 30.47 |
| | AIADMK | P. Kaliappan | 42,648 | 47.45 | 15.42 |
| | Independent | R. M. Alagappan | 697 | 0.78 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 3,893 | 4.33 | 4.05 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 89,886 | 67.96 | 1.39 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 133,753 | | |
| | DMK gain from AIADMK | DMK gain from AIADMK | Swing | 19.75 | |

### 1977

1977 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | AIADMK | P. Kaliyappan | 27,403 | 32.03 | |
| | INC | P. Chidambaram | 27,163 | 31.75 | |
| | DMK | C. T. Chidambaram | 18,228 | 21.31 | −38.51 |
| | JP | P. L. Karuppia | 12,763 | 14.92 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 240 | 0.28 | −19.36 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 85,557 | 66.57 | −4.91 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 130,184 | | |
| | AIADMK gain from DMK | AIADMK gain from DMK | Swing | -27.79 | |

### 1971

1971 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | DMK | C. T. Chidambaram | 39,986 | 59.82 | |
| | SWA | S. P. R. Ramaswamy | 26,858 | 40.18 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 13,128 | 19.64 | −5.38 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 66,844 | 71.47 | −4.81 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 98,287 | | |
| | DMK gain from SWA | DMK gain from SWA | Swing | 1.09 | |

### 1967

1967 Madras Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SWA | S. Meiyappan | 38,310 | 58.73 | |
| | INC | C. V. C. V. V. Chettiar | 21,992 | 33.71 | −7.45 |
| | CPI | R. H. Nathan | 4,928 | 7.55 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 16,318 | 25.02 | 16.87 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 65,230 | 76.28 | 7.54 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 89,938 | | |
| | SWA hold | SWA hold | Swing | 9.42 | |

### 1962

1962 Madras Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SWA | Saw Ganesan | 27,890 | 49.31 | |
| | INC | A. I. Subbiah Ambalam | 23,282 | 41.16 | −7.18 |
| | CPI | Halyasanathan | 5,393 | 9.53 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 4,608 | 8.15 | 4.44 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,565 | 68.74 | 11.12 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 84,983 | | |
| | SWA gain from INC | SWA gain from INC | Swing | 0.96 | |

### 1957

1957 Madras Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | INC | M. A. Muthiah Chettiar | 24,223 | 48.34 | −10.47 |
| | Independent | Ganesan Saw | 22,365 | 44.63 | |
| | Independent | R. M. Subbiah Chettiar | 2,348 | 4.69 | |
| | Independent | U. P. L. Venkatachalam Chettiar | 1,171 | 2.34 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 1,858 | 3.71 | −25.70 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 50,107 | 57.61 | 2.22 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 86,971 | | |
| | INC hold | INC hold | Swing | -10.47 | |

### 1952

1952 Madras Legislative Assembly election: Karaikudi :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | INC | Chockalingam Chettiar | 23,868 | 58.81 | 58.81 |
| | Independent | Mahalingam Chettiar | 11,932 | 29.40 | |
| | Socialist | Lakshmanan | 4,782 | 11.78 | |
| Margin of victory | Margin of victory | Margin of victory | 11,936 | 29.41 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,582 | 55.39 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 73,261 | | |
| | INC win (new seat) | INC win (new seat) | INC win (new seat) | INC win (new seat) | INC win (new seat) |