Congress’s MLA-elects from across Kerala made a beeline for the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) headquarters at the Indira Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram for a closed-door meeting at 1 p.m. on Thursday (May 14, 2026), ahead of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) much-anticipated and somewhat long-drawn-out announcement of its pick for Kerala’s next United Democratic Front (UDF) Chief Minister. 

Meanwhile, Congress workers trickled into party offices in the State, as their eagerness to know the party high command’s choice for the top post appeared to reach a feverish pitch. The keenly expectant party workers gathering in sizeable numbers in front of the District Congress Committee (DCC) offices appeared relatively tame compared to the past ten days of raucous displays of factional loyalties and vying poster campaigns in the wake of the declaration of the election results on May 4. 

Television camera crews staked out in front of the residences of the purported top contenders for the post, including former Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan at Paravoor in Ernakulam, senior leader Ramesh Chennithala in Thiruvananthapuram, and AICC general secretary, K C Venugopal, MP, in New Delhi, adding to the mood of political suspense that seemed to have pervaded Kerala’s polity. 

So far, the AICC has successfully kept its choice a closely guarded secret, seemingly rendering the “leadership contest” a cliffhanger right up to the final whistle.

AICC general secretary in charge of Kerala, Deepadas Munsi, will attend the crucial meeting of the Congress’s Legislative Party (CLP) designates. She is expected to arrive at the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport at 11 a.m. 

A KPCC insider said it was likely that Ms. Munsi might communicate the party high command’s decision to the MLA-designates before the All India Congress Committee (AICC) makes the official announcement from New Delhi. He said the Congress was also likely to seek an appointment with the Kerala Governor Rajendra Arlekar at the earliest as a first step towards government formation. 

Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament, Rahul Gandhi, and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge had held a closed-door meeting in New Delhi to take a final call on the leadership question and deferred the announcement to Thursday (May 14, 2026). 

Faced with opposing rallies and posters in support of the three Chief Minister probables, senior leader Jairam Ramesh, had told reporters in New Delhi on Wednesday (May 13, 2026), somewhat cryptically, that the high command would factor in public sentiment concerning the Kerala Chief Minister’s post. 

Meanwhile, United Democratic Front (UDF) constituents, including Kerala Congress (Joseph) and Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) leaders, have sought an appointment with Mr. Arlekar ostensibly to hand over letters supporting the Congress’s prospective government. 

Meanwhile, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leadership is scheduled to convene at the house of the party’s State president, Panakkad Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal, at Panakkad in Malappuram to lay the groundwork for government formation, including finalising the party’s choices for the next UDF cabinet.