Kerala: New CM A week after the election results were announced for five regions, four of the states and the Union Territory have already sworn in or finalised their Chief Ministers. Kerala, however, remains in a state of political gridlock. The 2026 Assembly election saw the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) unseat the Left Democratic Front (LDF), ending Pinarayi Vijayan’s tenure.
Yet, this victory has been shadowed by internal fighting within the Congress party. The delay in government formation stems from a high-stakes leadership contest between three contenders: V.D. Satheesan, K.C. Venugopal, and Ramesh Chennithala. Meanwhile, the state waits to see who will ultimately take the oath of office.
Kerala election result 2026
Party – Seats
Congress – 63
CPI(M) – 26
IUML – 22
CPI – 8
KEC – 7
RSP – 3
BJP – 3
RJD – 1
The Congress recorded its highest-ever tally (63) in the state. For the UDF, the mandate brought both an opportunity and pressure to deliver on promises of change. However, as of now the party has not finalised a name for the Chief Minister position.
Congress meeting
Suspense over the Congress’ choice for the next Chief Minister of Kerala continued on Saturday after nearly three hours of high-level deliberations at Congress President Mallikarjuna Kharge’s residence in New Delhi.
However, despite prolonged discussions and back-to-back consultations, the party did not announce a decision, indicating that further internal deliberations could take place.
Kerala CM contenders
At the centre of the power struggle in Kerala is AICC general secretary K. C. Venugopal, who has reportedly secured the backing of a majority of Congress MLAs.
Citing party sources, reported that nearly 47 of the 63 Congress legislators expressed support for Venugopal before AICC observers, arguing that his organisational control and national influence make him best suited for the position.
However, the battle is not straightforward. Public sentiment within Kerala is strongly tilted towards V.D. Satheesan, who led the Congress campaign against the Left government headed by Vijayan.
Satheesan supporters have organised demonstrations across several districts demanding that ‘the man who led the battle should lead the state.’ However, the Congress high command, is reportedly unhappy with the aggressive public mobilisation in Satheesan’s favour, viewing it as a breach of party discipline.
Meanwhile, Ramesh Chennithala continues to position himself as a possible consensus candidate should the high command fail to bridge the divide between the Venugopal and Satheesan camps.
BJP slams Congress
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla slammed Congress’ delay in the decision-making for the Kerala CM face.
“BJP has already formed govt in Bengal. Announced CM candidate in Assam. But Cong in Keralam in full confusion even after full majority,” he added.
“This is Cong model. Maybe they will give 5 CMs- 1 year each
Himachal
Rajasthan
Karnataka
Punjab
Rajasthan,” he continued.
“We saw in all these states Cong vs cong for CM Chair,” the leader said.
What’s next?
Under intense pressure from both allies and the Opposition, the burden of decision now rests with the Congress leadership. They are expected to take a final call soon on who will serve as the next Chief Minister of Kerala.
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