For her, it is not just another election, but also a moment that highlights a long-standing demand within the party.
The Congress, she says, has finally moved a step forward on women’s representation.
Years after Rahul Gandhi spoke about giving more space to women and youth leaders at a conclave, the party has fielded eight women candidates in its first list of 55 candidates released on Tuesday.
Also Read: Seven in 10 Kerala MLAs face criminal charges; over half are crorepatis: ADR
Speaking to PTI, Krishna hailed the high command’s decision.
“It’s really a happy and positive thing,” she said. She points out that women leaders in the party have been raising this issue for a long time, asking for better representation in elections and decision-making roles.
A former president of the Mahila Congress state unit, Krishna was the second woman to serve as the president of a District Congress Committee (DCC) in the history of the Congress Party in Kerala.
Also Read: Congress to contest 95, IUML 27 seats in 140-seat Kerala Assembly
With a long organisational career and a reputation as a combative grassroots leader, the 53-year-old leader is once again in the electoral fray from the Kollam segment after conceding defeat to CPI(M)’s sitting MLA Mukesh in the 2021 assembly polls.
She had served as the DCC president of the southern Kollam district during a politically challenging period after heading the Mahila Congress, the women wing of the Congress party, in the state.
Her previous outing in the 2021 Assembly elections saw her lose by a slender margin of 2,072 votes, a factor that has added optimism to her current campaign.
Over the past five years, Krishna has remained active in Kollam, engaging with local issues ranging from coastal livelihoods to welfare concerns of workers, while maintaining a visible presence in party programmes.
While talking amidst her busy roadshows, the woman leader said that the victory was a “near miss” last time, but political circumstances are all favourable to ensure her success in the upcoming election.
“I have remained actively engaged with the people of the constituency, taking up various public issues and staying connected with them despite my electoral setback. So my confidence is higher this time,” she said.
Krishna’s candidature is being viewed by the United Democratic Front (UDF) as an attempt to reclaim lost ground in a constituency where contests have often been closely fought.
Her early political exposure came during her college years in Kollam, where campus activism shaped her ideological grounding and organisational skills.
Over the years, she transitioned from student politics to full-time party work, steadily consolidating her position within the party.
During the conversation, she also flagged a range of developmental issues in the Kollam Assembly constituency, alleging neglect and lack of infrastructure development in the region.
She alleged that the constituency continues to face multiple challenges, including dilapidated roads and acute drinking water shortages, which have severely affected the daily lives of people.
Highlighting development concerns, Krishna said several projects related to tourism and infrastructure remain incomplete.
Krishna also alleged that the employment sector in the region is in a state of stagnation, with traditional industries such as coir and cashew facing severe setbacks.
Though the electoral landscape in the Kollam segment is generally considered to have a Left leaning, the constituency cannot be regarded as a permanent bastion of any particular party or front.
While the Left retains a strong cadre base, recent local body gains have boosted the morale of Congress-led forces.
For Krishna, the 2026 contest represents both a comeback bid and an opportunity to convert years of organisational work into an electoral victory.
Kollam Assembly constituency comprises 19 wards of Kollam City Corporation along with the neighbouring panchayats of Panayam and Thrikkaruva.
The ruling CPI (M) has fielded its grassroot connected face S Jayamohan to retain the sitting seat. BJP- NDA is yet to announce its candidate there.
