Satheesan, Chennithala, Venugopal: Frontrunners in Kerala CM Race

Thiruvananthapuram: A day after the Congress-led UDF swept back to power in Kerala, the mood in the alliance is one of joy, relief and cautious hope. At the same time, discussions on forming the new government and selecting the Chief Minister have already begun, with leaders holding meetings and informal talks to decide the next steps. Strong moves have begun among senior party leaders to pick an ideal candidate forChief Minister's post.

There are three major contenders in the state Congress for the post--Leader of the Opposition V D Satheesan, senior leader Ramesh Chennithala, and AICC general secretary and Lok Sabha MP K C Venugopal.

VD Satheesan, Leader of the Opposition, was widely regarded as the top Congress contender for the Chief Minister’s post.Satheeshan took charge of a struggling Congress in 2021. Over the past five years, under his leadership, the Congress-led UDF has made a strong comeback sweeping nearly all byelections, winning 18 of Kerala’s 20 Lok Sabha seats in 2024, and taking a decisive victory in the 2025 local body polls by securing control of about 60-65 per cent of councils.

Chennithala, former home minister, was part of a generation that produced chief ministers and union ministers and also mentored younger leaders who would go on to occupy high office. Within the party, his experience and organisational depth are being considered at a moment of transition.

For supporters, it feels like a long-awaited opening; for others, it remains a question of whether his moment has finally arrived or may slip away again.

KC Venugopal, a trusted aide of Rahul Gandhi and the party’s General Secretary (Organisation) he has steadily consolidated his position within the party's national leadership. A former Union Minister and MP from Alappuzha, Venugopal's administrative experience and organisational clout will be his key advantage. 

For senior leaders, the win is not just political--it is emotional. Many of them have described it as a moment of "people's trust returning".