Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK President MK Stalin on Thursday - March 2 opened up about the historical triumph of DMK-backed Congress candidate EVKS Elangovan in the Erode East bypoll. As Elangovan's victory has been confirmed amidst the final phase of vote counting, MK Stalin is on cloud nine as the victory has given a significant push to the party ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. 

Celebrating Elangovan's victory, hundreds of DMK cadres have gathered before the party's headquarters, Anna Arivalayam, Chennai and hailed Stalin's leadership and the voters' verdict. Speaking to the reporters at the headquarters, MK Stalin claimed that the victory at the Erode East constituency was for the Dravidian model of politics and that it is a prelude to the victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. 

MK Stalin said, "On the campaign trail, I had asked the people not to view this as just a bypoll, but as an evaluation of the Dravidian Model of governance. So the people have evaluated us and given us an immense victory. The results are a prelude to the victory we will get in the Lok Sabha elections coming soon." Congratulating Elangovan, Stalin said that the voters have given a historic mandate and they also have given a befitting lesson to ADMK's Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS).

"The people of the region have given a historic victory to the candidate representing our Secular Progressive Alliance. I thank the people with all my heart", Stalin added. He further extended his gratitude to the party's secretaries, cadres, and the leaders of allied parties for their work in the Erode East bypoll. Responding to a question whether the prime ministerial candidate for the Lok Sabha polls would come from Tamil Nadu, Stalin said, "Our focus now is on who should not be the prime minister and who should not be in power." 

Speaking about the historic mandate, Elangovan said, "The credit for the victory goes to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin. The DMK government has fulfilled its election promises and this victory is a recognition of that. The results show people's love for secular coalition." As his victory is confirmed, it would be the first time that Elangovan would enter the Tamil Nadu assembly in three decades as he had served as Gobichettipalayam MLA from 1984 to 1989. 

The voting for the Erode East bypoll was held on Monday - February 27 and though there were over 70 candidates on the ballot, the clash was between DMK-backed Congress candidate Elangovan and ADMK's Thennarasu. In a constituency that has over 2,26,000 voters, more than 1.7 lakh voters had cast their franchise and the bypoll had recorded a voter turnout of 74.79%, which is the highest in the constituency since the 2011 assembly elections. 

The counting of votes began on Thursday - March 2 and since the beginning, Elangovan has taken the lead. By the time of writing this content, Elangovan has crossed 1 lakh-mark by securing 1,03,769 votes while his immediate contender, ADMK's Thennarasu has bagged 41,268. With this current tally, Elangovan has been leading with 62,500 votes more than Thennarasu. It is pertinent to note that Elangovan has surpassed the margin kept by his son Thirumahan Everaa in the 2021 assembly polls from Erode East. Everaa's demise on January 4 necessitated the bypoll.

Now, Elangovan will be replacing his son Everaa as the Congress MLA of Erode East. Several political leaders of DMK alliance have congratulated Elangovan over his triumph. Acknowledging the result, Tamil Nadu BJP President Annamalai said, "I bow my head and accept the verdict of the people in the Erode east by-poll. 2024 Lok Sabha elections are for BJP, not bypolls." ADMK's Edappadi Palaniswami is yet to comment on the election result but the party's candidate Thennarasu said that the money has won today and the democracy has no value. On the other hand, Seeman's Naam Tamilar Katchi has bagged 7,984 votes and Vijayakanth's DMDK has got 949 votes.