Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is making her electoral debut from Wayanad. (File)
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra appears set to succeed her brother Rahul Gandhi as the MP from Kerala's Wayanad. She is leading by a margin of over 1.5 lakh votes in the parliamentary by-election, which was held to fill the vacancy left by Rahul Gandhi when he moved to Raebareli.
Priyanka Gandhi, who is making her electoral debut from Wayanad, has won over 1.9 lakh votes so far. CPI veteran Sathyan Mokeri is trailing with about 65,000 votes while the BJP's Navya Haridas is in the third spot with about 35,000 votes.
A total of 16 candidates, including Ms Gandhi, are contesting from Wayanad.
Rahul Gandhi was elected from this seat for the first time in 2019, which allowed him to remain a Lok Sabha member despite losing in Amethi. In 2024, he contested from both Wayanad and Rae Bareli, left vacant by his mother Sonia Gandhi after she moved to Rajya Sabha. Having won both the seats, he decided to keep Rae Bareli and let his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra contest from Wayanad.
Rahul Gandhi and his mother and former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi had been actively campaigning for Priyanka Gandhi over the past month, having set a target of over 5 lakh victory margin.
Trying to gather maximum public support, Mr Gandhi challenged his sister to make Wayanad the best tourist destination. "When people think of Kerala, the first destination should be Wayanad. This will benefit the people of Wayanad and its economy, and the world will get to know its beauty," he had said.
Campaigning for his sister, Mr Gandhi has also suggested that he will always be available for the people of Wayanad. The constituency will have two MPs, one of them "unofficial", he had said.
Votes are being counted bypolls to 48 assembly seats and two parliamentary constituencies in a total of 15 states. The results for Maharashtra and Jharkhand assembly elections will be declared today as well.