Thrissur: Suresh Gopi has gained over 3,96,881 votes thus helping the BJP open an account in Kerala in Lok Sabha polls for the first time.
The saffron party has long been trying to make inroads in the state but all its efforts were in vain.
Suresh Gopi emerged as the strong candidate for the party in Kerala and Thrissur turned out to be the ideal constituency too.
When the saffron party first time debuted in Thrissur in 1989 its vote share was just 5.35 per cent and it continued to hover around 10 per cent until 2014.
The actor’s entry in the temple town saw the BJP’s percentage of votes increase from 11.15% in 2014 to 28.19% of votes in the last polls.
This time, Suresh Gopi was in a better position following the strong backing from PM Modi and the BJP leadership.
PM Modi held a roadshow in the constituency, gaining wide attention, and placed Suresh Gopi as one of the party’s important candidates. Modi went to the extent of gracing the wedding of Suresh Gopi's daughter with his presence adding to the glamour value of the potential candidate.
Alongside, Gopi was active in the constituency well before the polls.
The former Rajya Sabha PM tried to woo Christian votes and offered a golden crown to a church in the constituency.
The BJP previously won the maiden seat in the Kerala assembly in 2016 with with O Rajagopal winning the Nemom seat in Thiruvananthapuram, but the party could not repeat that victory in the 2021 or the 2026 election.