New Delhi: The Congress has set its sights on the 2027 Assembly Elections in Kerala with Wayanad MP and senior leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra set to review UDF booth-level committees during her three-day visit from February 8 to 10.
Till the previous Assembly elections, power had rotated in Kerala between the Congress-led UDF and the CPI-M-led LDF every five years but the latter created history by winning their second consecutive term in 2021. The Congress managers now say they will not let the LDF get a third term in 2027. Before the next assembly elections, the UDF will face the local body elections in December this year which will be considered a semi-final for the 2027 contest.
"Her visit to Wayanad will certainly create momentum for the entire state. The Congress-UDF has already started preparing for the 2027 Assembly Elections. The LDF will not be able to secure a third term in the Assembly," All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary in charge of Kerala P V Mohan told ETV Bharat.
Priyanka Gandhi, who became the Wayanad MP recently, has since then been actively taking up the issues related to the southern state, especially getting the Centre to declare the Wayanad landslides as a national disaster. During her visit, Priyanka will attend booth-level UDF leadership meetings in Mananthavady, Sultan Bathery and Kalpetta on February 8, Eranad and Thiruvambady on February 9 and Wandoor and Nilambur on February 10. On February 8, she will also visit the Lourdes Matha Church in Pallikkunu, Kaniyambetta and meet the families of persons killed during man-animal conflicts recently on February 10.
The AICC functionary said that the Congress was strong in the Wayanad Lok Sabha area but needed to push the UDF in the other parts of the state. The Congress has 21 MLAs in the 140-member assembly. In 2021, the Congress-led UDF had 39.47 per cent vote share. The UDF swept the 2024 Lok Sabha polls winning 18 of the 20 seats with the Congress getting 14 seats and a vote share of 44 per cent.
"No alliance has been voted in the state assembly for consecutive three terms. The UDF will come to power in the state next year as the LDF faces huge anti-incumbency," said Mohan. According to party insiders, while the Congress had been upbeat after the Wayanad win of Priyanka Gandhi, usual flare-ups between state unit chief K Sudhakaran and CLP leader VD Satheesan had been a concern.
Sudhakaran had replaced then state unit chief Mullappally Ramachandran following the election loss in 2021. As reports of infighting bothered the high command, AICC general secretary in charge Deepa Dasmunshi held several rounds of consultations with the state leaders over December and January to prepare a revamp plan.
"There was infighting in the state unit but that has been curbed now. The presence of Gandhi has boosted the entire state unit. We have started working to strengthen the party at the booth level," said Mohan. The AICC functionary further said that the Congress was strong in the Wayanad Lok Sabha area but needed to push the UDF in the other parts of the state.
