The decade starting from 1967 marked a pivotal moment for Tamil Nadu, as it witnessed the rise of two significant Dravidian parties: the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).
Since 1977, these two parties have remained the dominant forces in the State’s political landscape, solidifying their positions as the primary players in Tamil Nadu’s political arena.
In the 1967 Lok Sabha election held in the State along with the Assembly poll, the DMK-led United Front (UF), consisting of Swatantra, Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Muslim League, took on the then ruling Congress. Interestingly, the DMK founder C.N. Annadurai, who tasted defeat in Kancheepuram in the 1962 Assembly election, preferred to contest from the South Madras Lok Sabha constituency five years later, despite being the head of the DMK and the front. Even though he won, he quit the MP post to become the first non-Congress Chief Minister of the State, post-Independence.
