Bringing an end to nearly 10 days of political suspense, the Congress on Thursday officially named senior party leader V. D. Satheesan as the next Chief Minister of Kerala following the United Democratic Front’s victory in the Assembly elections.

The announcement was made by Congress’ Kerala in-charge Deepa Dasmunsi after days of internal consultations and leadership discussions within the party. The decision came shortly after a key meeting between senior Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge in New Delhi.

Reacting to the development, state Congress leaders described the selection as a positive and consensus-driven decision for the party and the alliance government.

Satheesan, currently serving as the Leader of Opposition in the outgoing Kerala Assembly, is regarded as one of the Congress party’s most prominent faces in the state. A six-time MLA from the Paravur constituency in Ernakulam district, he first entered the Assembly in 2001 and has retained the seat in every election since then.

Born in Nettoor near Kochi in 1964, Satheesan began his journey in public life through student activism and later emerged as a key organisational leader within the Congress. Before entering full-time politics, he practised law at the Kerala High Court for several years and was also associated with social work initiatives.

Known within political circles for his organisational skills and strong ideological grounding, Satheesan is now set to take charge of the new Congress-led administration in Kerala after the UDF secured a decisive mandate in the Assembly polls.