Chief Minister of Kerala
Head of the government of the Indian state of Kerala

Chief Minister of Kerala
Kēraḷa Mukhyamantri
Emblem of Kerala
since 25 May 2016
Chief Minister's Office
Kerala Council of Ministers
Executive branch of the Kerala Government
StyleThe Honourable (Formal)
Mr./Mrs. Chief Minister (Informal)
TypeHead of government
AbbreviationCM
Member of
Kerala Council of Ministers
Kerala Legislative Assembly
Reports to
ResidenceCliff House, Thiruvananthapuram
SeatKerala Government Secretariat, Thiruvananthapuram
NominatorMembers of the Kerala Legislative Assembly
AppointerGovernor of Kerala
by convention, based on appointee's ability to command confidence in the Niyama Sabha
Term lengthAt the pleasure of the governor of Kerala[1]
  • Niyama Sabha term is 5 years unless dissolved sooner
  • No term limits specified
Constituting instrumentArticle 164 of the Constitution of India
PrecursorPrime minister of Travancore
Prime minister of Kingdom of Cochin
Chief Minister of Madras
Chief ministers of Travancore-Cochin
Formation5 April 1957; 68 years ago (1957-04-05)
First holderE. M. S. Namboodiripad (1957–1959)
DeputyVacant
Salary
  • ₹185,000 (US$2,200)/monthly
  • ₹2,220,000 (US$26,000)/annually
Websitekeralacm.gov.in

The Chief Minister of Kerala is the head of government of the Indian state of Kerala. As per the Constitution of India, the state's governor is the state's de jure head, and the de facto executive authority rests with the chief minister. Following elections to the Kerala Legislative Assembly, the governor usually invites the party (or coalition) with a majority of seats to form the government. The governor appoints the chief minister, whose council of ministers are collectively responsible to the assembly. Given that he has the confidence of the assembly, the chief minister's term is for five years and is subject to no term limits.[2] Usually, the chief minister also serves as leader of the house in the legislative assembly.[3]

Following India's independence from the British Raj in 1947, the states' monarchs of Travancore (Thiruvithāmkōr) and Cochin (Kochi) instituted a measure of representative government, headed by a prime minister and his council of ministers. On 1 July 1949, Travancore and Cochin were merged to form Travancore-Cochin state. The Malabar and Kasaragod region of South Canara, which together constitute more than half of present state of Kerala, had their representatives in the Madras Legislative Assembly. On 1 November 1956, the States Reorganisation Act redrew India's map along linguistic lines, and the present-day state of Kerala was born, consisting of Malayalam-speaking regions, by merging the Malabar, and Kasaragod districts with Travancore-Cochin.[4]

The first assembly election in Kerala was held in February–March 1957, and the first Kerala Legislative Assembly was formed on 5 April 1957. The assembly had 127 members including a nominated member.[4] E. M. S. Namboodiripad of the Communist Party of India, was the first chief minister, and his tenure was cut short by the imposition of President's rule. Since then, 12 people have served as the chief minister of Kerala. E. K. Nayanar held the office for 10 years and 353 days, and is the longest serving holder of the office. Karunakaran was sworn-in as the chief minister four times. A. K. Antony was the youngest to hold the office at age of 36 years, and V. S. Achuthanandan was the oldest to be sworn in at the age of 82 years. The state has come under President's rule seven times, with the last of them occurring in 1982. Since the 1980s, the office of the chief minister has generally alternated between the leaders of the Indian National Congress and of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).

Pinarayi Vijayan is the incumbent chief minister since 25 May 2016, and is the first chief minister from Kerala to be re-elected after completing a full term of 5 years.

Predecessors

  • † Assassinated or died in office
  • § Returned to office after a previous non-consecutive term
  • RES Resigned
  • NC Resigned following a no-confidence motion

Prime ministers of Travancore (1948–49)

No[a] Portrait Name Term of Office Assembly Appointed by

(Monarch)

Party
1 Pattom A. Thanu Pillai 24 March 1948 17 October 1948 210 days Representative Body (1948–49) Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma Indian National Congress
2 Paravoor T. K. Narayana Pillai 22 October 1948 1 July 1949 253 days

Prime ministers of Cochin (1947–49)

No[b] Portrait Name Term of Office Assembly Appointed by

(Monarch)

Party
1 P. Govinda Menon 14 August 1947 22 October 1947 51 days 6th
Council
(1945–48) 		Aikya Keralam Thampuran Independent
2 T. K. Nair 27 October 1947 20 September 1948 334 days
3 E. Ikkanda Warrier 20 September 1948 1 July 1949 284 days Legislative Assembly (1948–49)

Prime ministers of Travancore-Cochin (1949–50)

No[c] Portrait Name Term of Office Assembly Appointed by

(Rajpramukh)

Party
1 Paravoor T. K. Narayana Pillai 1 July 1949 26 January 1950 209 days 1st Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma Indian National Congress

Chief ministers of Travancore-Cochin (1950–56)

After India's independence in 1947, Travancore and Cochin were merged to form Travancore-Cochin on 1 July 1949. On 1 January 1950, Travancore-Cochin was recognised as a state.

No[d] Portrait Name Term of Office Assembly Appointed by

(Rajpramukh)

Party
1 Paravoor T. K. Narayana Pillai 26 January 1950 28 February 1951 1 year, 33 days 1st Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma Indian National Congress
2 C. Kesavan 28 February 1951 12 March 1952 1 year, 13 days
3 A. J. John 12 March 1952 16 March 1954 2 years, 4 days 2nd
(1951 election)
4 Pattom A. Thanu Pillai 16 March 1954 10 February 1955 331 days 3rd
(1954 election) 		Praja Socialist Party
5 P. Govinda Menon 10 February 1955 23 March 1956 1 year, 42 days Indian National Congress
– Vacant[e]
(President's rule) 		23 March 1956 31 October 1956 222 days Dissolved N/A

Chief ministers of Kerala

On 1 November 1956, Government of India enacted the States Reorganisation Act, 1956 by which a new Kerala state was formed by the merger of Travancore-Cochin state with the Malabar district and Kasaragod taluk of South Canara district of the Madras State. The southern part of Travancore-Cochin, Kanyakumari district, along with Sengottai Taluk was transferred to Madras state and the Laccadive and Minicoy Islands were separated from Malabar district to form a new Union Territory.[6][7] A new Legislative Assembly was also created, for which elections were held in 1957.

No[f] Portrait Name[g] Constituency Tenure Assembly
(election) 		Ministry Party[h]
Vacant[e]
(President's rule) 		N/A 1 November 1956 5 April 1957 155 days Dissolved N/A
1 E. M. S. Namboodiripad Nileshwaram 5 April 1957 31 July 1959 2 years, 117 days 1st
(1957 election) 		Namboodiripad I Communist Party of India
Vacant[e]
(President's rule) 		N/A 31 July 1959 22 February 1960 206 days Dissolved N/A
2 P. A. Thanu Pillai Thiruvananthapuram II 22 February 1960 26 September 1962 2 years, 216 days 2nd
(1960 election) 		Thanu Pillai Praja Socialist Party
3 R. Sankar Kannur I 26 September 1962 10 September 1964 1 year, 350 days Sankar Indian National Congress
Vacant[e]
(President's rule) 		N/A 10 September 1964 25 March 1965 2 years, 177 days Dissolved N/A
25 March 1965 6 March 1967 Dissolved
(1965 election)[i]
(1) E. M. S. Namboodiripad Pattambi 6 March 1967 1 November 1969 2 years, 240 days 3rd
(1967 election) 		Namboodiripad II Communist Party of India
(Marxist)
4 C. Achutha Menon Kottarakkara 1 November 1969 3 August 1970 275 days Achutha Menon I Communist Party of India
Vacant[e]
(President's rule) 		N/A 4 August 1970 3 October 1970 60 days Dissolved N/A
(4) C. Achutha Menon Kodakara 4 October 1970 25 March 1977 6 years, 172 days 4th
(1970 election) 		Achutha Menon II Communist Party of India
5 K. Karunakaran Mala 25 March 1977 27 April 1977 33 days 5th
(1977 election) 		Karunakaran I Indian National Congress
6 A. K. Antony Kazhakootam 27 April 1977 29 October 1978 1 year, 185 days Antony I
7 P. K. Vasudevan Nair Alappuzha 29 October 1978 12 October 1979 348 days Vasudevan Nair Communist Party of India
8 C. H. Mohammed Koya Malappuram 12 October 1979 4 December 1979 53 days Koya Indian Union Muslim League
Vacant[e]
(President's rule) 		N/A 5 December 1979 25 January 1980 51 days Dissolved N/A
9 E. K. Nayanar Malampuzha 25 January 1980 20 October 1981 1 year, 268 days 6th
(1980 election) 		Nayanar I Communist Party of India
(Marxist)
Vacant[e]
(President's rule) 		N/A 21 October 1981 28 December 1981 68 days N/A
(5) K. Karunakaran Mala 28 December 1981 17 March 1982 79 days Karunakaran II Indian National Congress
Vacant[e]
(President's rule) 		N/A 17 March 1982 23 May 1982 67 days Dissolved N/A
(5) K. Karunakaran Mala 24 May 1982 26 March 1987 4 years, 306 days 7th
(1982 election) 		Karunakaran III Indian National Congress
(9) E. K. Nayanar Thrikaripur 26 March 1987 24 June 1991 4 years, 90 days 8th
(1987 election) 		Nayanar II Communist Party of India
(Marxist)
(5) K. Karunakaran Mala 24 June 1991 22 March 1995 3 years, 271 days 9th
(1991 election) 		Karunakaran IV Indian National Congress
(6) A. K. Antony Tirurangadi 22 March 1995 20 May 1996 1 year, 59 days Antony II
(9) E. K. Nayanar Thalassery 20 May 1996 17 May 2001 4 years, 362 days 10th
(1996 election) 		Nayanar III Communist Party of India
(Marxist)
(6) A. K. Antony Cherthala 17 May 2001 31 August 2004 3 years, 106 days 11th
(2001 election) 		Antony III Indian National Congress
10 Oommen Chandy Puthuppally 31 August 2004 18 May 2006 1 year, 260 days Chandy I
11 V. S. Achuthanandan Malampuzha 18 May 2006 18 May 2011 5 years, 0 days 12th
(2006 election) 		Achuthanandan Communist Party of India
(Marxist)
(10) Oommen Chandy Puthuppally 18 May 2011 25 May 2016 5 years, 7 days 13th
(2011 election) 		Chandy II Indian National Congress
12 Pinarayi Vijayan Dharmadam 25 May 2016 19 May 2021 9 years, 240 days 14th
(2016 election) 		Pinarayi I Communist Party of India
(Marxist)
20 May 2021 Incumbent 15th
(2021 election) 		Pinarayi II

Statistics

Fraction of time of holding CMO by party in Kerala (as of December 2025)
  1. Communist Party of India (Marxist) (42.6%)
  2. Indian National Congress (37.0%)
  3. Communist Party of India (16.1%)
  4. Praja Socialist Party (3.97%)
  5. Indian Union Muslim League (0.22%)
List of chief ministers by length of term
No. Name Party Length of term No: of terms
Longest
continuous term 		Total years
of premiership
1 E. K. Nayanar CPI(M) 4 years, 361 days 10 years, 353 days 3
2 Pinarayi Vijayan CPI(M) 9 years, 240 days 9 years, 240 days 2
3 K. Karunakaran INC 4 years, 305 days 8 years, 315 days 4
4 C. Achutha Menon CPI 6 years, 172 days 7 years, 80 days 2
5 Oommen Chandy INC 5 years, 6 days 6 years, 256 days 2
6 A. K. Antony INC 3 years, 105 days 5 years, 347 days 3
7 V. S. Achuthanandan CPI(M) 4 years, 364 days 4 years, 364 days 1
8 E. M. S. Namboodiripad CPI(M)/CPI 2 years 240 days 4 years 357 days 2
9 Pattom A. Thanu Pillai PSP 2 years 216 days 2 years 216 days 1
10 R. Sankar INC 1 year 350 days 1 year 350 days 1
11 P. K. Vasudevan Nair CPI 347 days 347 days 1
12 C. H. Mohammed Koya IUML 53 days 53 days 1
List by party
Political parties by total time-span of their member holding CMO (20 January 2026)
No. Political party Number of chief ministers Total days of holding CMO
1 Communist Party of India (Marxist) 4 10332 days
2 Indian National Congress 4 8813 days
3 Communist Party of India 3 3834 days
4 Praja Socialist Party 1 947 days
5 Indian Union Muslim League 1 53 days

Timeline

Pinarayi VijayanV. S. AchuthanandanOommen ChandyE. K. NayanarC. K. Mohammed KoyaP. K. Vasudevan NairA. K. AntonyK. KarunakaranC. Achutha MenonRaman SankarPattom Thanu PillaiE. M. S. Namboodiripad
Pinarayi VijayanV. S. AchuthanandanOommen ChandyE. K. NayanarC. H. Mohammed KoyaP. K. Vasudevan NairA. K. AntonyK. KarunakaranC. Achutha MenonR. SankarPattom A. Thanu PillaiE. M. S. Namboodiripad

See also

Notes

  1. ^ A parenthetical number indicates that the incumbent has previously held office.
  2. ^ A parenthetical number indicates that the incumbent has previously held office.
  3. ^ A parenthetical number indicates that the incumbent has previously held office.
  4. ^ A parenthetical number indicates that the incumbent has previously held office.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h President's rule may be imposed when the "government in a state is not able to function as per the Constitution", which often happens because no party or coalition has a majority in the assembly. When President's rule is in force in a state, its council of ministers stands dissolved. The office of chief minister thus lies vacant, and the administration is taken over by the governor, who functions on behalf of the central government. At times, the legislative assembly also stands dissolved.[5]
  6. ^ A number in parentheses indicates that the incumbent has previously held office
  7. ^ Year in parentheses indicates life span
  8. ^ This column only names the chief minister's party. The state government he heads may be a complex coalition of several parties and independents; these are not listed here.
  9. ^ As the 1965 election did not deliver a clear mandate in favour of any party or coalition, no assembly was convened, and President's rule was re-imposed.

References

  1. ^ "Article 164 in constitution of India". Constitution of India. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  2. ^ Durga Das Basu (1960). Introduction to the Constitution of India (20 ed.). LexisNexis Butterworths Wadhwa. pp. 241–245. ISBN 978-81-8038-559-9. Although the text talks about Indian state governments in general, it applies for the specific case of Kerala as well. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  3. ^ "Leader of the House". Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  4. ^ a b Sreedhara Menon, A. (January 2007). Kerala Charitram (2007 ed.). Kottayam: DC Books. ISBN 978-81-264-1588-5.
  5. ^ K. Diwanji, Amberish (15 March 2005). "A dummy's guide to President's rule". Rediff.com.
  6. ^ The States Reorganisation Act, 1956 (PDF) (Report). Government of India.
  7. ^ "Seventh Amendment, 1956". Government of India. Retrieved 19 November 2023.

Further reading

  • Chief Ministers, Ministers, and Leaders of Opposition of Kerala (PDF), Thiruvananthapuram: Secratriat of Kerala Legislature, 2018
  • Chandran, VP (2018). Mathrubhumi Yearbook Plus – 2019 (Malayalam ed.). Kozhikode: P. V. Chandran, Managing Editor, Mathrubhumi Printing & Publishing Company Limited, Kozhikode.
  • Menon, A. Sreedhara (2007). A Survey of Kerala History. DC Books. ISBN 9788126415786.
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