DMK asks Kamal Haasan to campaign extensively for alliance in 2026

Chennai: Tamil Nadu’s ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) is likely to field Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) chief Kamal Haasan as one of the party-led alliance’s key campaigners for the 2026 assembly polls as part of the efforts to ward-off challenges to be posed by actor Vijay’s entry into politics.

This July, the DMK will send Kamal Haasan to Rajya Sabha, fulfilling its promise made to the actor in return for his party’s support to the Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. Kamal had campaigned extensively for the SPA in April 2024 after his MNM formally joined the DMK alliance, three years after the party faced a drubbing in the second elections it contested in 2021.

On February 13, Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin met Kamal Haasan at the latter’s residence here, fueling speculation about the Rajya Sabha nomination as six members are set to retire in July. With the combined strength of 159 MLAs, the DMK can get four candidates elected without any contest.

While Rajya Sabha berth did figure during Thursday’s discussions, sources told DH that Udhay and Kamal Haasan deliberated more on the 2026 election campaign. Udhay explained to Kamal Haasan the plan to use him extensively for the elections which is crucial for the DMK which has already begun its preparations.

Since Vijay’s Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam will also be in the fray, the DMK believes Kamal Haasan will be a potent weapon in the party’s arsenal to take on the newbie politician.

“The DMK wants Kamal to travel the entire state to campaign for the 2026 assembly polls. They party believes a star like Kamal Haasan would add more heft to its campaign,” a source told DH.

Vijay is likely to pose a challenge to both DMK and AIADMK as he projects himself as the third Dravidian party in Tamil Nadu, not as a change agent like Kamal Haasan or Rajinikanth, whose political entry never saw the light of the day. The actor has also identified DMK as TVK’s “political enemy” and has been targeting the ruling party at every given opportunity.

For Kamal Haasan, going to Rajya Sabha with the help of DMK and campaigning for the party in elections is a climbdown from his earlier stand of emerging as an alternative to the Dravidian majors. MNM contested only two elections in 2019 and 2021 in which it polled about 4 and 2 per cent votes respectively. After the 2021 loss, MNM hasn’t been active, and the party joined the DMK alliance in March 2024.