NewsIndia

Udhayanidhi Stalin has secured victory in the Tamil Nadu elections by retaining his Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni Assembly constituency. He defeated D. Selvam by 7,140 votes on May 4, 2026.

This marks Udhayanidhi’s second consecutive win in this constituency. His previous victory in 2021 was by a much larger margin of 69,355 votes. This time, however, his lead was narrower than expected.

Meanwhile, Udhayanidhi’s father, M.K. Stalin, suffered a significant defeat in his own Kolathur seat during the same election. The DMK’s performance overall declined dramatically, with their seat share plummeting from 133 seats to just 6 as of 5 pm on election day.

Key facts:

• Udhayanidhi won with a lead of 7,140 votes over D. Selvam.
• The DMK’s seat share fell drastically from 133 seats to 6.
• TVK won 10 seats and was leading in 99 as of election day.

Udhayanidhi is viewed as the political heir of both Karunanidhi and M.K. Stalin. Observers suggest he may become the leader of the opposition if the DMK remains the main opposition party following this election cycle.

The Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni seat is historically significant for the DMK. Udhayanidhi’s grandfather, Karunanidhi, won three times from this constituency before its unification with Triplicane in 2011.