Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry began the 2026 election cycle this morning. The BJP is aiming for a hat-trick in Assam, while Kerala's Left Front wants a fifth consecutive term. N Rangaswamy's AINRC is aiming for a fourth win in five Puducherry polls.
Here are the top ten takeaways from this important story:

• Assam is this round's headline state. A high-voltage campaign ended Tuesday after the BJP and Congress battled accusations and denials amid a barrage of promises. The BJP vowed to implement the UCC, create two lakh employment, deport illegal migrants, spend Rs 5 lakh crore on connectivity, and provide two LPG cylinders, all in response to concerns of gas shortages during the US attack on Iran.
• Much of the campaign rhetoric focused on 'jati-mati-bheti', or the BJP's promise to defend Assamese land and culture from infiltration by'miyas', a disparaging name for Muslims of Bangladeshi origin, whom the ruling party has labelled as 'illegal immigrants'. The Congress responded by accusing Sarma and the BJP of spreading a 'politics of hatred' and specifically targeting him, claiming his wife has many passports and owns properties abroad, and seeking an investigation into his family's wealth.
   
• The death of musician Zubeen Garg may also influence how votes are cast in this election. The 52-year-old died while scuba diving off the coast of Singapore in September 2025. Local officials verified the accident, but Assam Police said he had been'murdered'.The BJP and Congress traded punches, with the latter promising to deliver 'justice' in 100 days if elected.
• This election will also be the first since the northeastern state's delimitation in 2023, a contentious exercise that resulted in the redrawing of constituencies in areas where Muslim community votes were significant, reducing these from 32 of the state's 126 seats to 22.
  The BJP will fight 90 seats, Asom Gana Parishad 26, and Bodoland People's Front 11. The Congress has chosen Lok Sabha MP Gaurav Gogoi to lead its campaign and will contest 99 seats, leaving 13 for the Raijor Dal, 10 for the Assam Jatiya Parishad, and six for other parties.
• Meanwhile, Kerala closed the campaign window on Tuesday evening with dramatic last-minute appeals from candidates across party lines.According to local media, some figures rode cranes and arranged street acts, wearing red (for the ruling Left), tricolour (for the Congress), and saffron (for the BJP), while indecisive voters were courted.
  The election for the 140-member Assembly is shaping up as a three-way race, with the BJP, which normally struggles for traction in the southern state, expected to do better than usual, especially after a strong showing in the December local body polls, which saw it elected Mayor of Thiruvananthapuram.
• Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's Left alliance has played the continuity card, emphasising its 10-year governing record, infrastructure development and welfare programs, and crisis management ability. However, the Congress-led UDF coalition has accused the Left Front of extensive corruption and has been bolstered by large victories in the December elections.
  This is a vital moment for the BJP-led alliance's aspirations to grow into the two southernmost states, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, which have previously ignored it. Despite increasing its vote share in Kerala in recent elections, the BJP has yet to win single Assembly seat.
• In Puducherry, Rangaswamy's NR Congress, which is associated with the BJP and Tamil Nadu's AIADMK, is competing against the Congress-DMK coalition for the 30-member Assembly. Actor Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam TVK will make its electoral debut, with a primary focus on the Tamil Nadu poll.