 For more videos on people's struggles, please subscribe to our YouTube channel. The ruling communist-led coalition left Democratic Front, LDF, secured a thumping victory in the election to the Kerala Legislative Assembly held on April 6th. The LDF, under the leadership of Chief Minister Pinaray Vijayan, increased its total from 91 seats in the 140 seat assembly in 2016 to 99. The United Democratic Front, UDF, led by the centrist Indian National Congress, INC, lost six seats from its previous tally and ended up with 41. The far-right Bharatya Janata Party led National Democratic Alliance, which rules the center, was decisively defeated across the state and lost the one seat that it had. The reelection of the LDF has made history. For over 40 years, no government has returned to power in successive elections. The powerful display of electoral strength was led by Chief Minister Pinaray Vijayan, who won his Dharmadam constituency with a resounding margin of 50,000 votes. Kerala's Health Minister K.K. Shailaja, who won much acclaim for her leadership during the COVID-19 crisis, got a majority of 60,000 votes from the Matanur constituency. This is the highest majority secured by a candidate in Kerala's history. The left returned to power on the back of an extremely successful governance record, a strong stand against religious polarization and a commitment to federalism. The LDF government was tested by multiple crises. The outbreak of the Nepal virus in 2018, two disastrous rounds of flooding in 2018 and 2019, and the COVID-19 pandemic. In each instance, the government was in the forefront of relief activity and mobilized the community to ensure effective rebuilding. The LDF government achieved the impressive record of fulfilling 570 out of the 600 promises made in the 2016 election manifesto. Under the Life Mission Project, 250,000 homes were constructed for the homeless. Social security pensions were hiked and effectively delivered, providing a huge relief to the poor. Throughout the COVID-19 crisis, food kits have been delivered to families across the state, which has proved to be a major source of relief during lockdowns. The government has also started administering free vaccines across the state. The left government has also made huge investments in public health, public schools, and other infrastructure development. Enrollment rates rose in government schools, and government-owned enterprises began to turn profits. The verdict is also a fitting response to the polarizing campaigns promoted by the far-right NDA. The left-led government played a key role in opposing religious polarization and discrimination. Under Pinarayi Vijayan, the government took a firm stand against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act, the National Register of Citizens, and the National Population Register. The three systems together were seen as a bid by the Narendra Modi-led right-wing government to introduce a religious aspect to citizenship. Vijayan was one of the first to declare that these would not be implemented in the state. The Narendra Modi-led right-wing government—the right-wing government—did not implement these things. It spread across the country, and achieved big scientific results, so we had to legislate without any advance. The Communist and progressive sections in the state were also in the forefront of defending the right of women to enter the Shavari Malla Temple as per a Supreme Court order. Both the BJP and the opposition Indian National Congress opposed this verdict and organized violent protests against the entry of women. Putting it in simple terms, we could talk about six reasons for the victory of the left democratic front in Kerala. One, its policies have been popular. The LDF government expanded public education and public health care in a big way. It increased pensions and greatly improved their coverage to benefit a total of almost six million people. It built 250,000 houses for the poor. Apart from these, it made major investments in economic infrastructures such as new roads and bridges. Finance Minister Thomas Isaac led the effort to raise resources necessary for these. The right wing in Kerala has traditionally claimed that the left is not good enough when it comes to building economic infrastructure. But this time, they lost that plank. Two, leadership. Chief Minister Pinarai Vijayan emerged as an extremely popular leader with the leadership he showed in steering the state during several periods of crisis. Kerala was hit by severe floods in 2018 and 2019 and then by the COVID pandemic. The LDF government handled these crisis efficiently and ensured relief to the people. The important role that Health Minister KK Shailaja played in the battle against the COVID pandemic made her immensely popular too. Importantly, it became clear to the people that it was the LDF which was the best suited to handle the challenges that lie ahead. Three, commitment to secularism. When the BJP government at the center brought in the Citizenship Amendment Act and the National Register of Citizens that threatened to turn Muslims into second-class citizens, the LDF government stood firmly against the CAA and NRC and declared that they will not be implemented in Kerala. Kerala was the first state in which the state assembly passed a resolution against the CAA. This gave religious minorities and other democratic-minded people even more confidence in the left. Four, communication. Vinray Vijayn's daily press conferences during the floods and the pandemic, which people watched live, became a very effective method of communicating directly to the people. Apart from that, the left built a large social media presence by mobilizing its activists and sympathizers. This meant that the falsehoods that tried to media propagate and which used to have a shelf life of months or even years were being demolished in the manner of days or even hours. Five, reaching out to more sections of people. The LDF is a coalition of parties led by the Communist Party of India Marxist. In recent times, the LDF has expanded to include a few more parties which have their own mass base. This has allowed the LDF to reach out to more sections of people, which turned out to be very important in the elections. Six, organization. Over the years, the left has worked to expand the reach of its class organizations and mass organizations. The work of organizations such as the Democratic Youth Federation of India or DYFI and that of the trade unions has been crucial in making the community-centered response of the LDF government to the COVID pandemic possible. Organizations like DYFI and the Students' Federation of India, SFI, have helped in taking the message of the left to more and more sections of the youth. This organizational deepening when combined with the LDF government's development and welfare programs, defense of secularism and its handling of crisis has made such an impact that even among sections of people who have been opposed to the left for generations, the younger generation is closer to the left. The government has also been a leader in defending the rights of states and India's federal system. These rights and resources due to the states have been especially under threat since the Modi government came to power in 2014. The center has also targeted the state government on various occasions even as major misinformation campaigns were run by the opposition parties. Having overcome all of this, with a greater margin than the last election, the new government of Pinarayi Vijayan will continue to face a number of challenges on the political, social and financial fronts. The coming five years will be of vital importance to Kerala and those upholding progressive values across the country.