HYDERABAD: Andhra Pradesh chief minister and Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu is set to face a Herculean task of selecting nominees for five MLC seats to be filled up by the electoral college of legislators. In all, elections will be held for 28 MLC seats under various categories later this month.

The Election Commission is likely to issue a notification on March 10 for the five MLC seats under the legislative assembly quota. At least a dozen former legislators are in the race for these seats. Elections for the MLC seats under teachers' constituencies and the college of local authorities will be held on March 22. Polling for seats under the MLAs' quota will be held on March 27.

In Srikakulam district, former speaker Pratibha Bharati has pinned hopes on an MLC ticket. She had lost the assembly elections thrice in a row. Tentu Lakshmi Naidu is in the race from Vizianagaram district. In Visakhapatnam district, the fight for the TDP ticket is mainly between G Ramanaidu and Kanna Babu. Kanna Babu joined the TDP from Congress just before the 2014 elections.

In Kurnool district, senior leaders TG Venkatesh, Tikka Reddy, NMD Farooq and L Venkataswami have been lobbying for the legislative council berth. Linga Reddy from Kadapa may get the party ticket as Chandrababu Naidu had already promised to nominate him. Karanam Balaram and Jupudi Prabhakar are hopeful of making it to the legislative council from Prakasam district.

In Anantapur district, the race is between Naidu's confidante P Keshav and Abdul Ghani, who could not get the party ticket for Hindupur assembly seat. The TDP leadership had fielded actor N Balakrishna from Hindupur. Somireddy Chandramohan Reddy is lobbying from Nellore district.

But Chandrababu Naidu may find the job tougher in his native Chittoor district as former ministers Galla Aruna Kumari and G Muddukrishnama Naidu have locked horns for the MLC berth. Forest minister B Gopala Krishna Reddy is said to be supporting Aruna.

There are many aspirants from Krishna district. The list includes Budda Venkanna, P Anuradha, B Rajendra Prasad, TD Janardhan, and V Ramaiah. Naidu's' close aide and TDP programmes committee chairman VVV Chowdary is also reportedly in the race. Chandu Sambasiva Rao, Dasari Raja, M Subba Rao and K Sai Vikas are in the race from Guntur district. From East Godavari district, M Bharat, who missed the opportunity to contest in the last assembly polls, is now hoping to get the MLC ticket.