Holiday Declared in 7 Kerala Districts Tomorrow, Dec 11, Ahead of Local Body Polls

The Kerala government has declared a holiday on Wednesday, December 11, for all government and private educational institutions in seven northern districts that go to polls in the second and final phase of the state’s local body elections.

The holiday applies to Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, and Kasaragod, where voting will take place on Thursday, December 12. Authorities have announced the holiday to ensure smooth polling operations and to facilitate voter participation without disrupting academic activities.

This phase marks the conclusion of the high-stakes local body election process, which is seen as a political indicator ahead of the 2026 Kerala Assembly elections. A total of 12,225 polling booths will be operational across these districts, out of which 2,055 have been categorised as sensitive. Kannur alone accounts for 1,025 sensitive polling stations.

To maintain law and order, the State Election Commission has arranged live webcasting and videography at all sensitive booths. More than 74,000 election officials have been deployed for poll duties.

Vote counting will begin at 8 a.m. on Monday, December 13, with results made available in real time through the SEC’s ‘TREND’ software.

The first phase of polling in southern Kerala was completed on Tuesday, December 8.