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Chennai: A sombre atmosphere gripped Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) headquarters in Chennai on counting day, as early trends in the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections showed the party slipping to a distant third position.

At Anna Arivalayam, the DMK’s central office, tents and other celebratory arrangements were seen being dismantled shortly after initial leads began to emerge. Party workers were observed removing awnings, packing up chairs and clearing the premises, an indication of the rapidly changing mood within the camp.

DMK has fallen to third place as TVK leads across all 16 constituencies in Chennai, threatening Chief Minister M.K. Stalin and Deputy CM Udhayanidhi Stalin's seats amidst changing political dynamics.

MK Stalin is trailing in Kolathur by 4,011 votes, while his son Udhayanidhi Stalin is trailing in Thiruvallikeni by 646 votes. Vijay is leading in Trichy East by 5,286 votes.

In total, till the filing of this report, TVK was leading in 111 seats, followed by AIADMK in 72 seats, pushing the DMK to a third slot with 51 seats in the 234-seat Assembly. The half-way mark is 118.

People on the ground said DMK spokespersons, who had been actively engaging earlier in the day, went largely silent as the trends turned unfavourable. The developments come in stark contrast to the party’s initial preparations, which had included setting up infrastructure for potential victory celebrations.

Adding to the emotional scenes, a party worker was seen breaking down at the headquarters as the early numbers painted a bleak picture for the Dravidian party.

While the trends are still preliminary and subject to change as counting progresses, the visuals from the DMK office reflect growing anxiety within the ranks. The final outcome, however, will only be clear once all rounds of counting are completed.