While aware of international issues, it is local concerns that are on voters' minds [EPA]

Voters in India go to the polls on Thursday after the first phase of the country's massive election campaign was brought to a close.

However, voters here in Kerala along with those in Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Chhattisgarh, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep, will have to wait for more than a month for the results as counting will be taken up only on May 16.

Along with the major drop in decibel levels in the 124 constituencies in 17 states and territories going to the polls first, came a gag order from the national Election Commission restricting publication of opinion or exit polls from 3pm local time on Tuesday until the conclusion of the elections in the fifth and final phase on May 13.

Final push

Activists went into frenzy on Tuesday to make the most of their last window of opportunity to woo voters.

The activists, some of them precariously perched atop vehicles with loud speakers, tore through residential areas of this coastal capital city of Kerala state.

Special report

For the former UN undersecretary-general who was India's choice for the UN secretary-general's job, this campaign was a far cry from the time he visited world capitals for the keenly contested post.  

"This one is very exhausting but at the same time very exhilarating", said Tharoor as he caught up with the outside world on his ever-busy Blackberry while travelling to yet another campaign stop.

The whole experience of connecting with the voters and knowing their aspirations has been a humbling one, he said while waving to well-wishers on the rutted, narrow roads.

Simple message

On a rigged up flatbed lorry at a fishing community, Tharoor's message to the crowd was as simple as the setting: he would translate his experience on the global stage to make their voices heard in the national parliament in New Delhi.

And his promise to open a local office seemed to connect with voters here.

"It doesn't matter even if he does not do much for us," says John Dennis, who runs a small supplies shop for fisher folk.

"We are just happy to have an eminent personality like Tharoor represent us. It is sure to benefit us."

Dennis says Kerala's ruling Marxists have failed to deliver on their pledges

This anti-incumbency factor is the bane of all political parties in India: when voters find parties not meeting their needs, the only way they can punish them is by kicking them out for at least the next five years.

However, Joseph Varghese, a fisherman, said he would remain a communist supporter.

"I trust them. They have done something. And moreover, they are the ones who help us out in our hour of need," he said.

While the candidates were making their last-minute appeals to the voters, party workers were busy distributing flyers and reminding voters on the need to exercise their franchise wisely.

A flyer issued by a right-leaning party took potshots at Tharoor over his alleged derogatory references against Congress leaders of yore, including the former prime ministers Indira Gandhi and her son, Rajiv.

Israeli-Palestinian issue

Another, issued by the Left Front reminded voters of the need to consider the plight of the marginalised - locals and Palestinians.

Yes, the Palestinians are on the agenda here.

It is the offshoot of a fierce campaign onslaught over Tharoor's alleged pro-Israeli stance.

To counter this, Tharoor's committee has put out posters showing him with Yasser Arafat, the late Palestinian leader.

Tharoor has had to defend himself against allegations of a pro-Israel bias

There have also been references to Iraq and even the My Lai massacre during the Vietnam war.

It shows how connected the voters are in this 100 per cent-literate state in India with what the local media dishes out.

But apart from these global diversions, the election in the state has been fought, by and large, on local issues.

The focus of even national leaders of the three major contending forces in the fray has been largely on Kerala-specific issues, all of which got more than the usual play in the media.

From the word go, this has been a tough election for the ruling LDF.

The LDF's greatest relief is that there is no perceptible anti-incumbency wave sweeping the state.

The VS Achuthanandan-led LDF government has instituted schemes such as debt waivers for farmers and the fishing community, and enhanced pensions and other social security benefits, to a wide swath of the underprivileged.

Despite doing good for the poor, some Christian and Hindu religious leaders and community organisations have made known their unhappiness with the "godless" communists.

And even as one of the shortest campaigns in Kerala's electoral history officially ended under the harsh April sun, party workers were still busy with "silent campaigning" in the remaining hours before polls opened on Thursday, making door-to-door visits away from the eyes of the election commission.