The 1980 Lok Sabha (Parliament) election in Tamil Nadu was held to elect Members of Parliament (MPs) from 39 parliamentary constituencies in the state. Indian National Congress (I) emerged as the leading party, winning 20 seats. Dravida Munetra Kazhagam came second with 16 seats.
A total of 28,113,893 electors were registered to vote across the state. Of these, 18,767,818 votes were polled, resulting in an overall voter turnout of 66.8%. The average victory margin across all constituencies was 75,355 votes, with the closest contest decided by just 6,612 votes and the largest margin reaching 156,898 votes.
A total of 4 political parties won at least one seat in this election. India's Lok Sabha elections use the First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) system, where the candidate with the most votes in each constituency wins the seat. The party or coalition winning a majority of Lok Sabha seats forms the central government and appoints the Prime Minister.
Seat data is not available for this selection.
Seat breakdown: Indian National Congress (I) (20), Dravida Munetra Kazhagam (16), All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (2), Independent (1).
Click on any constituency name to view the full candidate-wise breakdown with individual vote counts, vote share percentages, and party affiliations.
| Sno. | Constituency | Type | State | Winner | Party | Electors | Votes | Turnout | Margin | Margin% | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 347-Chennai North | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Lakshmanan G. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 739196 | 527126 | 71.30% | 99318 | 18.80% | 1980 |
| 2 | 348-Chennai South | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Venkataraman R. | Indian National Congress (I) | 811849 | 552796 | 68.10% | 120362 | 21.80% | 1980 |
| 3 | 349-Chennai Central | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Kalanidhi A. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 726953 | 493806 | 67.90% | 105049 | 21.30% | 1980 |
| 4 | 350-Sriperumbudur | SC | Tamil Nadu | Nagaratnam T. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 720766 | 451190 | 62.60% | 82777 | 18.30% | 1980 |
| 5 | 352-Arakkonam | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Velu A.M. | Indian National Congress (I) | 701433 | 468113 | 66.70% | 117361 | 25.10% | 1980 |
| 6 | 353-Vellore | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Abdul Samad A.K.A. | Independent | 707512 | 430318 | 60.80% | 79546 | 18.50% | 1980 |
| 7 | 354-Krishnagiri | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Ramamurthy K. | Indian National Congress (I) | 656215 | 362269 | 55.20% | 100511 | 27.70% | 1980 |
| 8 | 355-Dharmapuri | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Arjunan K. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 694088 | 384635 | 55.40% | 66871 | 17.40% | 1980 |
| 9 | 360-Salem | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Palaniappan C. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 691389 | 470633 | 68.10% | 26258 | 5.60% | 1980 |
| 10 | 364-Nilgiris | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Prabhu R. | Indian National Congress (I) | 734760 | 488097 | 66.40% | 85743 | 17.60% | 1980 |
| 11 | 365-Coimbatore | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Ram Mohan Alias Era Mohan R. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 785260 | 518780 | 66.10% | 56109 | 10.80% | 1980 |
| 12 | 366-Pollachi | SC | Tamil Nadu | Dhandapani C.T. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 705793 | 464211 | 65.80% | 15735 | 3.40% | 1980 |
| 13 | 367-Dindigul | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Maya Thevar K. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 757333 | 481438 | 63.60% | 26746 | 5.60% | 1980 |
| 14 | 368-Karur | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Dorai Sebastian S.A. | Indian National Congress (I) | 762973 | 514544 | 67.40% | 74134 | 14.40% | 1980 |
| 15 | 369-Tiruchirappalli | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Selvaraju N. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 722379 | 519651 | 71.90% | 73599 | 14.20% | 1980 |
| 16 | 370-Perambalur | SC | Tamil Nadu | Mani K.B.S. | Indian National Congress (I) | 694116 | 490148 | 70.60% | 99172 | 20.20% | 1980 |
| 17 | 371-Cuddalore | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Muthukumaran R. | Indian National Congress (I) | 692583 | 454244 | 65.60% | 108651 | 23.90% | 1980 |
| 18 | 372-Chidambaram | SC | Tamil Nadu | Kulandaivelu V. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 694357 | 487049 | 70.10% | 138725 | 28.50% | 1980 |
| 19 | 373-Mayiladuturai | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Kudanthai Ramalingam N. | Indian National Congress (I) | 676693 | 520978 | 77.00% | 92005 | 17.70% | 1980 |
| 20 | 374-Nagapattinam | SC | Tamil Nadu | Karunanithi-Thazhai | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 684297 | 553290 | 80.90% | 10674 | 1.90% | 1980 |
| 21 | 375-Thanjavur | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Singaravadivel S. | Indian National Congress (I) | 660633 | 512635 | 77.60% | 44539 | 8.70% | 1980 |
| 22 | 376-Sivaganga | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Swaminathan R.V. | Indian National Congress (I) | 725576 | 514079 | 70.90% | 134561 | 26.20% | 1980 |
| 23 | 377-Madurai | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Subburaman A.G. | Indian National Congress (I) | 788417 | 533277 | 67.60% | 69195 | 13.00% | 1980 |
| 24 | 380-Ramanathapuram | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Sathiyendran M.S.K. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 736600 | 494332 | 67.10% | 84133 | 17.00% | 1980 |
| 25 | 382-Tenkasi | SC | Tamil Nadu | Arunachalam M. | Indian National Congress (I) | 679386 | 447818 | 65.90% | 108316 | 24.20% | 1980 |
| 26 | 383-Tirunelveli | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Sivaprakasam D.S.A. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 702603 | 475645 | 67.70% | 59962 | 12.60% | 1980 |
| 27 | 613-Chengalpattu | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Anbarasu Era | Indian National Congress (I) | 673832 | 484102 | 71.80% | 110016 | 22.70% | 1980 |
| 28 | 614-Gobichettipalayam | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Chinnasamy G. | All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam | 678003 | 434266 | 64.10% | 13875 | 3.20% | 1980 |
| 29 | 615-Nagercoil | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Dennis N. | Indian National Congress (I) | 663322 | 370796 | 55.90% | 38408 | 10.40% | 1980 |
| 30 | 616-Rasipuram | SC | Tamil Nadu | Devarajan B. | Indian National Congress (I) | 734978 | 441588 | 60.10% | 59872 | 13.60% | 1980 |
| 31 | 617-Sivakasi | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Sourdararajan N. | All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam | 756211 | 517475 | 68.40% | 6612 | 1.30% | 1980 |
| 32 | 618-Tindivanam | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Ramaswamy Padayatchi S.S. | Indian National Congress (I) | 717771 | 455048 | 63.40% | 156898 | 34.50% | 1980 |
| 33 | 619-Tiruchendur | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Kosalram K. T. | Indian National Congress (I) | 704399 | 445880 | 63.30% | 113819 | 25.50% | 1980 |
| 34 | 620-Tiruchengode | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Kandaswamy M. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 889296 | 547419 | 61.60% | 21218 | 3.90% | 1980 |
| 35 | 621-Tirupattur | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Murugian S. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 686891 | 444712 | 64.70% | 115361 | 25.90% | 1980 |
| 36 | 622-Vandavasi | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Pattuswamy D. | Indian National Congress (I) | 714275 | 468039 | 65.50% | 127154 | 27.20% | 1980 |
| 37 | 643-Palani | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Sanapathi Goundar A. | Indian National Congress (I) | 762601 | 440801 | 57.80% | 59568 | 13.50% | 1980 |
| 38 | 644-Periyakulam | GEN | Tamil Nadu | Natarajan Cumbum N. | Dravida Munetra Kazhagam | 735391 | 506263 | 68.80% | 19882 | 3.90% | 1980 |
| 39 | 645-Pudukottai | GEN | Tamil Nadu | V.N. Swamynathan | Indian National Congress (I) | 743763 | 600327 | 80.70% | 16099 | 2.70% | 1980 |
Data-driven analysis of the 1980 Tamil Nadu Lok Sabha election results, covering competitiveness, candidate performance, and voter behaviour.
The victory margin is the difference in votes between the winning candidate and the runner-up. A constituency with a margin under 5,000 votes is considered closely fought. The average margin in Tamil Nadu 1980 was 75,355 votes.
The 10 parliamentary constituencies decided by the narrowest margins.
| Constituency | Winner | Party | Margin |
|---|
Candidates receiving less than one-sixth (16.67%) of valid votes forfeit their security deposit. A high forfeiture rate indicates a party fielded candidates in constituencies with little voter support.
NOTA (None of the Above) allows voters to reject all candidates. When NOTA votes exceed the victory margin, it signals significant voter dissatisfaction.
| Constituency | NOTA Votes | Win Margin | NOTA > Margin? |
|---|
The Lok Sabha (House of the People) is the lower house of India's Parliament. Members of Parliament (MPs) are directly elected by voters in their respective parliamentary constituencies through universal adult suffrage.
Tamil Nadu is divided into 39 parliamentary constituencies. The constituencies are categorized as: GEN (32 seats), SC (7 seats). SC and ST reserved constituencies ensure representation for historically marginalized communities.
India follows the First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) electoral system. The candidate who receives the highest number of votes wins the seat. Elections are conducted by the Election Commission of India (ECI) using Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT).