Congress alliance has made a major comeback in Kerala after 10 years. Moreover, Kerala has 140 Assembly seats. The Congress-led alliance now appears ahead on nearly 90 seats. Therefore, this victory gives the party a fresh record after seven years.
With this win, Congress will have four chief ministers for the first time after seven years. Earlier, Congress last had four chief ministers in 2019. After that, the party repeatedly stayed stuck around three. In simple terms, Congress could not cross three chief ministers together for years.
Kerala’s win matters more for Congress because Priyanka Gandhi represents this state as a Lok Sabha MP. Moreover, Congress organisation general secretary K C Venugopal also comes from Kerala. Within Congress, leaders consider the organisation general secretary post the second most powerful position.
Five Reasons Behind Congress Victory
First, Congress strengthened the UDF alliance at the local level. It added three small parties before the election. Consequently, this step helped Congress at the right time. Also, local Congress votes did not split.
Second, Congress settled tension around the chief minister post during the election. Senior leaders avoided public remarks on that issue. Therefore, the top three leaders campaigned together. K C Venugopal, Ramesh Chennithala, and V D Satheesan appeared united during campaigning.
Third, Congress turned BJP’s growing influence into a major issue. During the CPM government, BJP’s presence kept rising in Kerala. This Congress line worked strongly. As a result, Muslim and Christian voters united behind Congress. Meanwhile, BJP leads on only two seats this time.
Fourth, Congress gave fresh faces full space in the election. It also fielded candidates who lost Lok Sabha polls. Additionally, the party gave priority to door-to-door campaigning. Senior leaders also kept local issues away from national-level framing.
Fifth, Congress assigned leaders like Sachin Pilot and Thomas to reach young and educated voters. Besides this, the party organised Imran Pratapgarhi’s rallies in Muslim areas. These leaders targeted 80-year-old Vijayan and his government.
Why This Brings Congress Joy After Seven Years
In 2018, Congress won Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan together. Additionally, it already had a government in Punjab. After 2014, Congress then had four chief ministers for the first time. The party also had its chief minister in Union Territory Puducherry. However, after that phase, Congress again fell into the three-chief-minister limit.
In 2020, Congress lost its Madhya Pradesh government. Then, in 2022, Congress lost Punjab. By February 2022, the party held power in only two states. However, in December 2022, Congress won Himachal Pradesh.
In 2023, Congress again won Karnataka and Telangana. However, that same year, it faced heavy defeats in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. Therefore, the number stayed at three. Congress then governed only Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka.
Now, in 2026, Congress will have chief ministers in Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Kerala. Therefore, after seven years, Kerala has delivered major good news for Congress.
