CHENNAI: The Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), the political branch of the strong Vanniyar community, has announced that it will run alone in the 2022 February urban local body elections. The PMK was a member of the AIADMK-led coalition in the 2019 national elections and 2021 Assembly elections.

S. Ramadoss, the founder of the PMK, informed his party's cadres that winning a significant number of seats in the urban local body elections would propel the party to the forefront of Tamil politics, allowing it to bargain with other parties from a position of strength.

The PMK broke away from the AIADMK alliance in the October 2021 rural local body elections in nine districts of Tamil Nadu, but it failed to have an impact because not a single PMK leader was elected to district panchayat, despite winning seats in rural bodies such as gramme panchayat.

The PMK is largely a party with a stronghold in northern Tamil Nadu, where the Vanniyar community accounts for the majority of voters. The party is attempting to gain as many seats as possible from this base, which might help it become a key factor in Tamil Nadu politics.

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