Hectic parleys have begun in the Kerala unit of the Congress and among the newly elected legislators of the party to select the Chief Ministerial candidate after the party posted an impressive win in the Assembly elections.
With three senior leaders of the party in the fray for the top job, the Congress High Command will eventually take a call on the contentious issue. KC Venugopal, a Parliament member and the AICC General Secretary in charge of the organisational affairs; Ramesh Chennithala, special invitee to the Congress Working Committee and a legislator from Haripad; and Opposition Leader VD Satheesan, who secured his sixth straight victory from the Paravur Assembly constituency, are the key contenders.
The central leadership of the Congress is meeting in New Delhi for preliminary discussions to decide on the new Chief Minister. Senior leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and KC Venugopal, are expected to deliberate and arrive at a consensus on the leadership choice. Party sources indicate that discussions have largely focused on which leader commands greater support among MLAs, and on whether allies such as the Indian Union Muslim League could play a decisive role.
Speaking to the media in Kochi before leaving to New Delhi, Venugopal said the high command would soon announce its decision on the next Chief Minister. Meanwhile, senior leader AK Antony, addressing reporters in Thiruvananthapuram, revealed the names of Venugopal, Satheesan and Chennithala for the post. However, Antony refrained from endorsing any particular candidate, describing all three as equally capable. He emphasised that the next Chief Minister must be able to steer the State out of financial strain without relying on populist measures.
Within party circles, concerns are also being raised about whether the high command’s choice could trigger a by-election, and how voters might respond to such a scenario after delivering a strong mandate. Meanwhile, the appearance of flex boards across Kerala promoting different leaders points to growing factional undercurrents within the party.
Earlier, Chennithala told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram that the final decision on the Chief Minister would be made by the party’s high command. He credited the Congress’s sweeping electoral victory to the hard work of its central leadership and grassroot workers, adding that the outcome reflected a clear public mandate against a decade of poor governance.
Published on May 5, 2026