RMP Eyes More Seats in Kerala's 2025 Local Polls to Preserve Left Identity
RMP Eyes More Seats in Kerala's 2025 Local Polls to Preserve Left Identity
The Revolutionary Marxist Party aims to widen its footprint in the 2025 local body polls across Kozhikode and beyond, while balancing ties with the UDF.
The Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) is pressing to deepen its footprint in Kerala’s 2025 local body polls, even as it maintains an officially independent Left identity. Born in Onchiyam, a town in Kozhikode district, the party has long aligned with the United Democratic Front (UDF) on many issues. It began openly backing the UDF from the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and has supported UDF candidates in several elections since. RMP’s state secretary says the plan is to field more candidates this time and test whether the party’s brand can survive a broader electoral test beyond its traditional strongholds.
The party currently holds power in Onchiyam and Eramala gram panchayats and has elected representatives in Chorod, Azhiyur, and Mavoor gram panchayats, as well as the Vadakara block panchayat in Kozhikode district, and in Kunnamkulam municipality and Thalikkulam gram panchayat in Thrissur district. These footholds form the core of a strategy that the RMP hopes to extend in 2025, especially as it eyes seats in Vadakara municipality and seeks to expand into districts such as Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam.
RMP leaders emphasize that while the UDF backing remains crucial, the party intends to keep an independent stance on core issues. In 2021, RMP leader K.K. Rema won Vadakara as an MLA with UDF support, illustrating the party’s potential role as a bridge between Left goals and Congress-led alliances. The broader context is a Kerala political landscape where coalition dynamics often shape electoral outcomes, even as the Left emphasizes ideological coherence.
Rivals caution that the RMP’s local base in its birthplace has been shrinking: eight gram panchayat members in Onchiyam in 2010, five in 2015, and four in 2020. Yet the party retains power in Onchiyam with UDF backing and argues its adaptability will help it stay relevant in a fast-changing political environment. The wider question for Kerala’s Left is how smaller allies like the RMP influence close races as the LDF and UDF navigate the 2026 Assembly polls, with the 2025 local polls acting as a proving ground.
For voters, the RMP’s trajectory signals a practical blend of local development promises with coalition pragmatism. If the party can convert new seats into tangible services while maintaining its independence on key issues, it could shift margins across Kozhikode and neighboring districts ahead of the 2026 cycle.
