Kerala Assembly Elections 2026 | A race among popularity, seniority and clout for CM post in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram: Even as United Democratic Front (UDF) chairman and opposition leader V D Satheesan is the frontrunner to the Kerala Chief Minister post, AICC general secretary K C Venugopal and former opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala are also in the fray.

As the AICC is kicking off the CM selection process by sending observers to the state, the supporters of all the three leaders are actively campaigning for them overtly and covertly.

Satheesan's supporters are mainly highlighting the popularity he earned by leading 'team UDF' to a historic victory with 102 seats.

Reception for V D Satheesan at Kochi on Tuesday.

A rousing reception received by Satheesan at Kochi on Tuesday, where party workers raised slogans praising him as the 'Chief Minister', could be something that the AICC decision makers can't ignore.

"Any move to deny the Chief Minister post to Satheesan could witness emotional outburst of the party workers," a Congress local leader said.

A statement of veteran leader A K Antony that the new UDF government should be able to work in accordance with the people's will is also being interpreted by Satheesan's supporters as backing for Satheesan.

While Chennithala is trying to cash-in on his seniority and experience in the party, Venugopal's supporters claim that he enjoys the support of the majority of elected members of the party.

Venugopal's clout among the party top leaders like Rahul Gandhi is a key cause for concern among his opponents.

A key hurdle for Venugopal is that he is not a MLA. His elevation to CM post will push the state to two by-polls - one for electing him as MLA and another for the Alappuzha MP post he is now holding.

Moreover, Venugopal's recent reappointment as parliamentary public accounts committee is interpreted as a message by a centre that his service was required in Delhi.

Satheesan and Chennithala camps are pinning hopes on backing from other coalition partners of the UDF, especially the Indian Union Muslim League and Kerala Congress (Joseph) which has 22 and seven seats respectively.

IUML president Panakkad Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal, who earlier backed the opinion polls in favour of Satheesan as CM, said on Tuesday that the Congress would be hopefully consulting coalition partners too in finalizing the CM.

Chennithala said in an interview to a channel on Tuesday that having support of maximum number of MLAs or being the opposition leader need not be a reason to emerge as the natural choice as leader of the legislative party as he did not receive any such consideration in 2021.

Party sources said that AICC general secretary in-charge of Kerala Deepa Dasmunsi, who knows the pulse of the state, especially the Congress workers, would be playing a key role in the decision making.