Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah today congratulated V.D. Satheesan on being named as the Kerala CM and said he looked forward to working closely with him to uphold the spirit of federalism and protect the shared interests of both the States and their people.

Taking to social media post on ‘X’, Mr. Siddaramaiah congratulated Mr. Satheesan on being named as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party in Kerala and as the next Chief Minister of Kerala.

“A six-term MLA, former Leader of Opposition from 2021 to 2026, and a leader who began his public life through student politics in the NSUI, Satheesan brings decades of legislative experience, organisational commitment and a deep understanding of people’s aspirations,” he said.

-PTI

Party workers burst crackers and celebrate in front of the DCC office following the announcement of V.D. Satheesan as Chief Minister.

Photo: K.K. Najeeb.

K.C. Venugopal extended his wishes to the Chief Minister designate V.D. Satheesan on social media platform X.

“Best wishes to my dear colleague Sh. @vdsatheesan on being chosen as the next CM of Keralam!,” he wrote on X. 

“We all welcome the Congress High Command’s decision, the party is supreme. We will work together for the welfare and development of Keralam!” the post further read.

Congress leaders and newly elected MLAs today extended their greetings to V.D. Satheesan soon after the AICC announced him as the CM of Kerala.

KPCC president Sunny Joseph shared a photograph of Mr. Satheesan on Facebook and wrote, “Congratulations to V.D. Satheesan, the 24th Chief Minister of Kerala.” MP Shafi Parambil also congratulated Mr. Satheesan on being selected as the CM of Kerala.

Congress leader and MLA V.T. Balram also congratulated Mr. Satheesan, saying the announcement reflected the will of the people.

Chandy Oommen, son of former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and the re-elected MLA from Puthuppally, also shared a photograph of Mr. Satheesan and extended his greetings.

Mathew Kuzhalnadan, who was re-elected as MLA from Muvattupuzha, said Kerala would see a new face and a new style of governance. “Greetings and congratulations to dear V.D. Satheesan,” he said.

Roji M. John, who was re-elected as the MLA from Angamaly, also shared a Facebook post congratulating Mr. Satheesan.

-PTI

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president Sunny Joseph on Thursday (May 14, 2026) said party workers in Kerala welcome the Congress leadership’s decision selecting V.D. Satheesan as leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP).

The CLP will meet at 4 p.m. in Thiruvananthapuram and formally nominate Mr. Satheesan to the Chief Minister’s post, Mr. Joseph told a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram. At the meeting, a decision will be finalised on meeting Governor Rajendra Arlekar at the Lok Bhavan.

The BJP on Thursday (May 14, 2026) took a swipe at the Congress over its decision to appoint V.D. Satheesan as the next Kerala chief minister, saying the move exposes “infighting” within the party and shows that it would be a “remote-controlled government”.

The Congress has named Mr. Satheesan as the next chief minister of Kerala, ending days of suspense and speculation over the matter.

In a post on X, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla claimed that the Congress party’s central leadership has imposed the decision on the State unit.

“It is clear that Kerala’s chief ministerial face has been decided in New Delhi and not in Kerala. The announcement was made from the AICC headquarters in Delhi, which shows that this will be a remote-controlled ‘sarkar’ (government),” he said.

The BJP leader also claimed there was disagreement within the Gandhi family over the leadership choice in Kerala and alleged that Mr. Satheesan was selected due to “pressure from Priyanka Gandhi”, who “did not want Rahul Gandhi’s candidate K.C. Venugopal at any cost”.

“Priyanka Vadra was dead against Rahul Gandhi’s pick of K.C. Venugopal. In fact, there was a huge family fight over who will call the shots in Kerala,” he alleged.

“After 11 days, finally the Congress party from Delhi has announced the name of V D Satheesan ji as its leader and that means he will be the next CM. This has been done under two pressures. The Jamaat and the IUML had read the riot act to Congress. So this is clear influence of the Muslim vote bank,” Mr. Poonawalla alleged. -- PTI

IUML, the second-largest constituent in UDF, today welcomed the AICC decision to select V.D. Satheesan as the next Chief Minister of Kerala.

Speaking to reporters, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) state president Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal congratulated Satheesan and said the party fully supports the Congress High Command’s decision.

“The decision has come. Along with the people of Kerala, we also approve it. Satheesan will be able to deliver good governance,” he said.

He said the IUML would function as part of “Team UDF”, a concept highlighted by Satheesan during the recent Assembly elections.

“Satheesan has always spoken about Team UDF. It will be a Team UDF government,” he said.

-PTI

Kerala CM-designate V.D. Satheesan today said that he would take into confidence senior Congress leaders and candidates for the top post, K.C. Venugopal and Ramesh Chennithala, and called for “collective effort” in governance.

Addressing a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram after Congress announced V.D. Satheesan as the Legislative Party leader, he thanked Rahul Gandhi and the UDF workers.

Mr. Satheesan said, “I do not see this position as a personal achievement, but as something divine. It was K.C. Venugopal who coordinated all the activities of the AICC. His support was immense. Ramesh Chennithala is also my leader. I will take all of them into complete confidence. I seek the support of every section of people in Kerala. Only a collective effort can build a new Keralam. No one can do it alone; a team can achieve it.”

-ANI

KPCC chief Sunny Joseph today said that Congress workers in Kerala welcome and accept the party high command’s decision to select V.D. Satheesan as the Chief Minister of the State.

Speaking to reporters at the Indira Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief Mr. Joseph said that AICC observers Ajay Maken and Mukul Wasnik, along with the party-in-charge of the state, Deepa Dasmunsi, will reach Thiruvananthapuram by 4 p.m.

Following that, the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting of the party MLAs will be held at the Assembly in the evening, Mr. Joseph said.

-PTI

Congress CM candidate for Kerala V.D. Satheesan has thanked the party high command for giving him such a “huge responsibility”.

Mr. Satheesan, speaking to reporters at the Contonment House, also thanked Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal for coordinating the AICC efforts and supporting all party activities, which helped it achieve a huge victory in the assembly polls in the State.

He also thanked senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala, who worked as the campaign committee chairman, for his role in the party’s win, saying “he is my leader also”.

-PTI

Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala left his residence soon after the AICC announced V.D. Satheesan as the next Chief Minister of Kerala.

Mr. Chennithala was also among those considered for the post.

When the AICC announcement was made, reporters reached Mr. Chennithala’s residence at Vazhuthacaud in Thiruvananthapuram.

Congress leader Jyothi Kumar Chamakkala told reporters that Mr. Chennithala was not at home and had already left.

-PTI

V.D. Satheesan, before the press briefing at Cantonment House in Thiruvananthapuram.

Photo: Nirmal Harindran / The Hindu

Congress general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal today accepted the party’s decision to select V.D. Satheesan as the Chief Minister of Kerala and congratulated him.

Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, Mr. Venugopal, who was one of the three persons being considered for the post, said he will provide all support to the CM and the UDF government in Kerala.

-PTI

Read the profile of the CM designate of Kerala, V.D. Satheesan, published by The Hindu.

Supporters of V.D. Satheesan started celebrating V.D. selection as the next CM of Kerala at the Cantonment House in Thiruvananthapuram.

Photo: Nirmal Harindran / The Hindu

V.D. Satheesan will be the next Chief Minister of Kerala. The Congress leadership today picked Mr. Satheesan as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party, putting an end to the high drama and suspense that lasted all of ten days after the declaration of the State Assembly election results on May 4.

Mr. Satheesan, 61, will take over as the 13th Chief Minister of the southern State, following the April 9 elections that ended ten years of CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) rule. The Opposition Leader of Kerala during 2021-2026, he succeeds Pinarayi Vijayan to the post after the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) scripted a landslide victory, claiming 102 seats in the 140-seat House.

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Celebrations erupted across Kerala today after V.D. Satheesan was selected by the Congress High Command as the next Chief Minister of the state.

Mr. Satheesan was at the Contonment House in Thiruvananthapuram, the official residence of the Leader of the Opposition, when AICC leaders announced it in New Delhi.

Soon after the announcement, jubilant Satheesan supporters burst firecrackers and distributed sweets in several parts of the State.

-PTI

AICC today announced Congress leader V.D. Satheesan as the CM designate of Kerala. The announcement was made in the press briefing by Ajay Maken, Mukul Wasnik, and Deepa Dasmunshi at the AICC Office.

This much-awaited announcement has come ten days after the result of the Kerala Assembly election was declared on May 4.

With the announcement, Congress will proceed to form the government in the State, ending days of speculation as the top leaders tussled among themselves for the post.

Senior Congress leader Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan today appreciated the party’s High Command for adopting a clear process to select the next Chief Minister of Kerala.

Speaking to reporters, Radhakrishnan, who is an elected legislator from Kottayam, said the High Command had heard everyone, with Rahul Gandhi directly involved in the process.

“This is a process with clarity which cannot be questioned by anyone. In a democracy, only such a process can be followed. I express my happiness to the High Command for it,” Mr. Radhakrishnan said.

He said confusion in selecting a leader from multiple names is natural.

-PTI

Late Congress stalwart Oommen Chandy’s son, Chandy Oommen, on Thursday said there has been no delay in choosing the CM of Kerala, as according to the Constitution, there is time till May 23 to decide that.

Mr. Oommen, the MLA-elect from the Puthuppally assembly seat, said that Congress was not an autocratic or one-man party and needed to discuss with everyone, taking into account all their claims and objections, before arriving at a decision.

“When there are so many eligible leaders, what is wrong with the party holding discussions with everyone? There is nothing wrong with it. As per democratic norms, we are holding a meeting, and after that, the decision will be announced,” he told a TV channel.

-PTI

Kerala Congress (J) chairman P J Joseph today reiterated that the party will seek two ministerial berths when the UDF comes to power.

He was speaking to reporters before leaving from Thodupuzha to Thiruvananthapuram, where a UDF meeting has been called to take forward the process of government formation.

The UDF secured 102 out of 140 seats, while Kerala Congress (J) has seven MLAs.

“We will make our claim in the UDF meeting. We will ask for two Ministers,” he said.

-PTI

The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has authorised its State president, Syed Sadikali Shihab Thangal, to take the next course of action amid continuing uncertainty over the Congress’s delay in naming Kerala’s next Chief Minister.

A meeting of the IUML leadership held at Mr. Thangal’s residence at Panakkad near Malappuram on Wednesday morning reviewed the evolving political situation as the Congress high command remained undecided on the Chief Ministerial choice.

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. today, 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.