​More from less: On the Puducherry election result

The people of the Union Territory of Puducherry, no strangers to fractured electoral verdicts, have decisively handed another term to the All India N.R. Congress-led National Democratic Alliance, favouring continuity and the status quo. Despite an unremarkable governance record, the NDA retained power largely due to the first-past-the-post system, which disproportionately rewards parties with the highest vote share. This is what has been reflected in the results of the 2026 Assembly poll. On the face of it, the NDA’s victory appears convincing, but a closer look at the vote-share data tells a different story. By winning 18 of the 30 Assembly seats, the ruling alliance gained two more seats than in 2021, even as its vote share fell to about 38% — nearly five percentage points lower than five years ago. On the other hand, the Congress-led INDIA bloc, with about 32% of votes, lost two seats and its tally stood at six. It also suffered erosion of its vote base by around 3%. The presence of the TVK has caused vote share loss to the two formations, though the NDA ultimately emerged victorious. The TVK, along with its ally, won three seats with a vote share of around 18%. Apart from the charismatic appeal of the TVK’s founder, C. Joseph Vijay, the prolonged wrangling over seat-sharing within the INDIA bloc hurt the alliance’s prospects, despite its emphatic Puducherry Lok Sabha victory two years ago by over 1.3 lakh votes. Chief Minister N. Rangasamy, set to begin his fifth term, deserves credit for shielding his alliance from the TVK’s challenge, despite speculation before the polls that the All India N.R. Congress might leave the NDA to join the fledgling party.

Instead of taking steps for the implementation of his electoral promise of securing Statehood for Puducherry, Mr. Rangasamy should focus on delivering better governance. The functioning of the outgoing regime came in for sharp criticism from the office of the C&AG which, in its report for 2023-24, had rapped the AINRC-headed regime for spending beyond its means. Apart from ensuring administrative continuity and closer alignment with the Centre, the Chief Minister should focus on balanced urban and rural development, and improving infrastructure and public services. Also, with changing demographics, renewed focus should be on youth employment, sustainable housing, and environmental conservation to maintain a high quality of life. His administration should make lasting efforts to reduce the damage that frequent cyclones and floods cause to the people and their livelihoods. Such an approach would be the perfect way of expression of gratitude on his part to those who have voted for him and the NDA.