Chennai: BJP is likely to field several first-time contestants in the 2026 Tamil Nadu assembly election, signalling a repeat of its experiment in the 2021 polls, party sources said. The approach is aimed at expanding the party’s organisational base and bringing a new generation of leaders into electoral politics in a state where the BJP is still working to strengthen its grassroots presence.
In 2021, BJP nominated eight electoral debutants across the state including its former state president K Annamalai, C K Saraswathi, Khushbu Sundar and Bhojarajan. BJP functionaries said several of the debutants performed well in the 2021 election. K Annamalai polled a little over 38% of the vote in Aravakurichi, while C K Saraswathi won the Modakurichi seat with about 42% of the vote. In Udhagamandalam, Bhojarajan secured around 42% of the vote despite finishing second. Party leaders said such performances have encouraged the leadership to consider fielding fresh faces in the upcoming election. BJP functionaries say, the party would adopt a similar strategy, either fielding an equal number of new faces or even more. Given the fact that BJP was eyeing more seats in the upcoming poll than the 20 it contested in 2021, the list could contain more debutants, say party sources. Party leaders said the upcoming candidate selection exercise is expected to follow a two-pronged approach: giving opportunities to debutants while gradually replacing those who have repeatedly contested elections without success. “The move is intended to inject fresh energy into the organisation and expand the party’s appeal beyond its existing leadership pool,” said a BJP leader. Internal discussions on potential candidates have gathered pace after the RSS–BJP coordination meeting held in Feb. Some of the new names that have are circulating within party circles include youth wing leader S G A Suryah, a state secretary A Ashwathaman. As the party is considering several debutants, sources said kin of some of the senior leaders are also eyeing a ticket. The BJP is simultaneously holding internal consultations on the number of seats it will seek in alliance negotiations ahead of the polls.
