Chennai: In the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, Chennai recorded an unprecedented 83.7 percent voter turnout—a historic high. However, the actual number of voters who cast their ballots increased only marginally compared to previous elections.
In the 2016 elections, 61.2 percent of votes were recorded in Chennai, with 24,22,915 individuals casting their votes out of a total electorate of 39,75,976. In the 2021 Assembly elections, when Chennai had approximately 40 lakh voters, 60 percent of the electorate (24,16,815 individuals) fulfilled their democratic duty.
Following the special revision of voter rolls, the total number of voters in Chennai decreased to 28,30,936. In the 2026 Assembly elections, only 24,69,493 individuals cast their votes. Overall, the Election Commission has reported that 4,71,000 voters in Chennai district did not participate in the election—specifically, 2,48,000 female voters and 2,22,000 male voters.
Chennai vote percentage 2026: Key constituencies that saw a decline
In six specific constituencies within Chennai, fewer votes were recorded in this election compared to the previous one:
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Thousand Lights: 1,36,673 votes in 2021 vs 1,30,881 in 2026 – a decrease of approximately 6,000 votes.
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Thyagaraya Nagar: 1,38,198 votes in 2021 vs 1,32,624 in 2026 – a decrease of approximately 5,500 votes.
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Mylapore: 1,53,643 votes in 2021 vs 1,49,392 in 2026 – a decrease of 4,251 votes.
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Harbour: 1,01,687 votes in 2021 vs 99,404 in 2026 – a decrease of 2,463 votes.
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Saidapet: 1,61,361 votes in 2021 vs 1,58,908 in 2026 – a decrease of 2,453 votes.
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Egmore: 1,19,450 votes in 2021 vs 1,18,723 in 2026 – a decrease of 727 votes.
SIR impact: Reason behind the trend
The primary reason for the simultaneous increase in voter turnout percentage and decrease in the actual number of voters in Chennai could be the large-scale removal of names during the Systematic Inclusion and Removal (SIR) process. Although Chennai witnessed an unprecedentedly high voter turnout percentage—a historic first—the actual number of votes cast increased by only a meager few thousand. The removal of names of deceased voters and duplicate entries through the SIR initiative is cited as one of the key reasons for this outcome.