46 Women Candidates Across 40 Seats: Is Kerala Changing?

Of 420 candidates fielded by the three main fronts, only 46 are women — about 11%. LDF leads with 18, NDA with 16, and UDF with 12. Ernakulam district has the highest concentration of women candidates.

46 Women Candidates, 40 Constituencies

In the 2026 Kerala Assembly Election, the three major fronts have fielded just 46 women out of 420 candidates — roughly 11 per cent.

Front-wise Breakdown

• LDF — 18 women candidates
• NDA — 16 women candidates
• UDF — 12 women candidates

District Spotlight

Ernakulam district has the highest concentration of women candidates with 6 across its 14 constituencies — LDF 2, NDA 3, UDF 1.

Notable Women Candidates

• R Sreelekha — Kerala's first female IPS officer; contesting from Vattiyoorkavu for BJP
• Veena George — Health Minister; defending her seat in Aranmula
• CK Asha — CPI; the only woman MLA from the 15th Assembly not seeking re-election was the exception — all other 10 women MLAs are contesting again

Previous Assembly

The 15th Kerala Legislative Assembly had 11 women MLAs. All except CPI's CK Asha are seeking a fresh mandate.

Progress or Limitation?

Women candidates are present in only 40 of 140 constituencies. While representation is slowly improving, true parity remains a distant goal.