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Rahul Gandhi's confidant, student politics history: All about KC Venugopal, frontrunner in Kerala CM race
Other contenders include senior leaders Ramesh Chennithala, and V D Satheesan.
The race for Kerala’s top post has reached its most decisive phase. After days of speculation over who could be the next chief minister, Kerala is expected to get its name for the top post today, more than a week after Assembly election results were announced. The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) secured a landslide victory, winning 102 out of 140 seats and ending a decade of Left Democratic Front (LDF) rule.
Now, after much discussion and deliberation, Congress is set to announce the name today. Top contenders include senior leaders Ramesh Chennithala, V D Satheesan and AICC general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal.
Also Read: KC Venugopal surges ahead in Kerala CM race: 7/10 support at key Rahul Gandhi meet
Several Congress leaders from Kerala, including five former Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chiefs, the United Democratic Front convenor, the KPCC disciplinary committee chief and three KPCC working presidents, met Rahul Gandhi yesterday to discuss and pick a chief minister for Kerala. Follow live updates here
Congress MP KC Venugopal is currently the frontrunner for the job, as he was backed by seven leaders, while two leaders — K Muralidharan and VM Sudheeran — supported VD Satheesan, and one leader remained neutral.
Who is KC Venugopal?
Known as one of Rahul Gandhi’s closest confidants, KC Venugopal has emerged as a key figure in the Congress leadership under Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge. With the party set to return to power in Kerala, he is now being seen as the strongest contender for the chief minister’s post.
Born in Kannur district in 1963, Venugopal entered politics through the student wing of the Congress. He went on to serve as president of the Kerala Students Union and later as state president of the Indian Youth Congress before making his electoral debut from the Alappuzha constituency in 1996.
Venugopal represented Alappuzha as an MLA for three consecutive terms between 1996 and 2009. During the late Oommen Chandy’s tenure, he served as Kerala’s tourism minister before shifting to national politics. He later won the Alappuzha Lok Sabha seat in both 2009 and 2014, and was inducted into the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government as a junior minister, handling portfolios including power and civil aviation.
Within the Congress organisation, Venugopal currently serves as the AICC General Secretary (Organisation) — one of the party’s most influential posts. In the role, he oversees key organisational matters ranging from candidate selection and alliance management to internal discipline and membership drives.
During the 2026 Kerala election campaign, PTI reported, citing sources, that Venugopal played a key role in bringing disgruntled CPI(M) leaders from the then ruling LDF into the Congress-led UDF camp.
Often seen seated beside Rahul Gandhi in Parliament and at major party meetings, Venugopal is widely viewed as one of the Congress leadership’s most trusted political strategists.
