VD Satheesan takes oath as Kerala Chief Minister

• V.D. Satheesan took oath as Kerala’s 13th Chief Minister on May 18.

• His 20 Cabinet members were also sworn in with Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar administering the oath of office at a grand function in Thiruvananthapuram. 

• The Assembly elections to the 140-member House were held on April 9. 

• The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) won 102 seats, the LDF secured 35, and the BJP won three. 

The leader who revived the Congress-led UDF 

• V.D. Satheesan was born on May 31, 1964 in Nettoor in Ernakulam district.

• The 61-year-old lawyer-turned-politician rose through the student wing of the Congress party.

• He was active in student politics at Sacred Heart College, Thevara, and later at Mahatma Gandhi University, where he held key student leadership roles. 

• His work in the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) further strengthened his position within the Congress party.

• A practising lawyer at the Kerala High Court, Satheesan first entered electoral politics in the mid-1990s from the Paravur constituency. 

• He lost his first election, but quickly recovered from the setback and went on to win the seat in the next attempt. 

• Since then, he has retained Paravur through multiple elections, building a strong local base over the years.

• Satheesan has now completed several consecutive terms as MLA, with victories in 2006, 2011, 2016 and 2021. 

• Within the Congress organisation, he has served in key roles, including AICC secretary and KPCC vice-president. 

• In 2021, he was chosen as Leader of the Opposition after the UDF’s defeat in the Assembly elections. 

• Under his leadership, the UDF improved its performance in several elections, including bypoll wins and a strong showing in the Lok Sabha polls in Kerala. 

• His strong performance in the 2026 Kerala election, where the Congress-led UDF made major gains, his position as one of the leading contenders for the Chief Minister’s post.