The Congress on Wednesday said it would announce its choice of Kerala chief minister on Thursday, ending days of suspense, intense discussions and marathon intra-party consultations after the Congress-led United Democratic Front’s landslide victory in the Assembly elections.
After a nearly 40-minute meeting between Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge at the latter’s residence in Delhi, party general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the discussions were over and the final decision would be announced tomorrow.
“As per the mandate of CLP members in Kerala, the Congress high command has completed all discussions. The decision on who will be the next chief minister of Kerala will be announced tomorrow,” Jairam Ramesh said.
Asked whether the announcement would be made in Delhi or Kerala, he said: “Tomorrow the decision on the next Chief Minister of Kerala will be announced.”
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This comes after state Congress president Suni Joseph on Wednesday hinted that the announcement might finally come later in the day, saying that intra-party discussions have concluded and only the final word from Delhi is awaited.
“We expect the name of the Prime Minister to be announced today. It is understood that all discussions have been completed. We are awaiting the announcement today. Sonia Gandhi was in the hospital, so there may be a slight delay due to that. The name of the Prime Minister will be announced from Delhi,” Joseph said.
The Congress-led United Democratic Front secured a two-thirds majority in the 2026 Kerala Assembly elections, the results of which were announced on May 4. However, the party has since been grappling with its choice of chief minister, holding multiple rounds of discussions with senior state leaders and former party presidents.
AICC general secretary KC Venugopal, outgoing Kerala Assembly Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan, and senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala are among the front-runners for the post.
