V
. D. Satheesan is set to become the new chief minister of Kerala. His name was finalized on Thursday, and Congress AICC in charge Deepa Dasmunsi confirmed the decision.
Another leader has also emerged in the race, but the final decision in favor of V. D. Satheesan as CM means that Congress General Secretary K. C. Venugopal has not been selected for the chief minister's post.
Kerala elections were held on May 4, but the Congress Party took 10 days to finalize its chief minister decision. In contrast, in four other states, chief ministers were decided quickly, and even swearing-in ceremonies took place, while in Kerala, the CM selection was finalized only after a delay of 10 days.
The delay was due to a lack of consensus within the Congress party itself, as there was no agreement on the decision-making committee. Three leaders were in the race for the chief minister's post—V. D. Satheesan, K. C. Venugopal, and Ramesh Chennithala—and discussions continued over these names, which led to the delay in finalizing the decision.
Most Congress party members were reportedly in favor of seeing K. C. Venugopal as chief minister, but after the 2022 election defeat, V. D. Satheesan worked actively for the party over the last five years and gained strong public support.
V. D. Satheesan is a senior leader of the Congress in Kerala and a six-time MLA from the Paravur Assembly constituency.
He has won the Paravur Assembly seat in the 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016, 2021, and 2026 elections.
From the Congress side, he was chosen as the Leader of the Opposition for the 2021–26 term, during which he strongly challenged the government on several issues.
In the 2026 Kerala Assembly elections, he won his traditional Paravur seat by more than 20,600 votes, defeating CPI candidate E. T. Tyson Master.
V. D. Satheesan has also served as the vice president of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC).
Photo: @ECI (AI Generated Images)
In the 2026 Kerala elections, the UDF won 102 out of 140 seats, securing a clear majority.
Indian National Congress (INC): 63 seats
Indian Union Muslim League (IUML): 22 seats
Kerala Congress (KEC): 7 seats
Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP): 3 seats
Kerala Congress (Jacob) – KC(J): 1 seat
Revolutionary Marxist Party of India (RMPI): 1 seat
Communist Marxist Party Kerala State Committee (CMPKSC): 1 seat
UDF Supported Independents (IND): 4 seats
