View source for Politics of Kerala

{{short description|Political system of Kerala}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2019}}
{{Infobox political system
| name                    = Political System of Kerala
| native_name             =  
| image                   = Government of Kerala Logo.svg
| image_size              = 130
| caption                 = [[Coat of arms of Kerala]]
| government              = [[Democracy|Democratic]]
| constitution            = [[Constitution of India]]
| formation               = 1950
| legislature             = [[Kerala Legislative Assembly]]
| legislature_type        = Unicameral
| legislature_place       = [[Niyamasabha Mandiram|Assembly Building]]
| legislature_speaker     = [[A. N. Shamseer]]
| legislature_speaker_title = Speaker

| title_hos               = [[Governor of Kerala|Governor]]
| current_hos             = [[Rajendra Arlekar|Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar]]

| title_hog               = [[Chief minister (India)|Chief Minister]] 
| current_hog             = [[Pinarayi Vijayan]]
| appointer_hog           = [[Governor of Kerala|Governor]]
| cabinet                 = Cabinet of Kerala
| current_cabinet         = Cabinet Vijayan
| cabinet_leader          = [[Chief minister (India)|Chief Minister]] 
| cabinet_deputyleader    = 
| cabinet_appointer       = [[Governor of Kerala|Governor]]
| cabinet_hq              = 
| cabinet_ministries      = 
| judiciary               = [[Judiciary of India]] 
| law                     = 
| court                   = [[Kerala High Court]]
| chief_judge             = [[S. Manikumar]]
| court_seat              = [[Kochi]]
}}

[[Kerala]] is an Indian state, where federal [[legislative power]] is vested in the [[Unicameralism|unicameral]] [[Kerala Legislative Assembly]]. The multilateral system has, since 1956, been dominated by the several pre-poll and post-poll alliances.

The judiciary of Kerala is independent of the [[Executive (government)|executive]] and the [[legislature]], while it is common for leading members of the executive (Kerala Council of Ministers) to be members of the legislature as well. The political system is laid out in the [[Constitution of India]] (1950).

[[Kerala Legislative Assembly|Legislative Assembly]] has a membership of 141, where 140 are elected and one is nominated from the [[Anglo-Indian]] community. Kerala has 20 seats in the [[Lok Sabha|Lok Sabha (Indian Lower House)]] and nine seats in the [[Rajya Sabha|Rajya Sabha (the Council of States)]]. Elections are also held to choose representatives to the [[Corporations, municipalities and taluks of Kerala|civic bodies]] at various levels within Kerala.

== Political parties ==
{{Main|Political parties in Kerala}}

=== Alliances ===
{| class="wikitable"
!Sl No
!Alliance Name
!Flag
!Current Status
|-
|1
|[[Left Democratic Front]] (LDF)
|[[File:Left Democratic Front (Kerala) Logo.svg|100px]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|2
|[[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|United Democratic Front]] (UDF)
|[[File:UDF logo.png|100px]]
|{{No2|Opposition}}
|-
|3
|[[National Democratic Alliance]] ( NDA )
|[[File:National Democratic Alliance.svg|100px]]
| None
|-
|}

=== National parties ===
{| class="wikitable"
!Sl No
!Party Name
!Symbol
!Alliance
!Current Status
|-
|1
|[[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]]
|[[File:CPI(M) election symbol - Hammer Sickle and Star.svg|100px]]
|[[Left Democratic Front|LDF]]
|{{yes2|Government}}
|-
|2
|[[Indian National Congress]]
|[[File:Hand INC.svg|100px]]
|[[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|UDF]] 
|{{no2|Opposition}}
|-
|3
|[[Bharatiya Janata Party]]
|[[File:BJP Election Symbol.svg|100px]]
|[[National Democratic Alliance|NDA]]
| None
|}

=== Recognised State Parties ===
{| class="wikitable"
!Sr No
!Party Name
!Symbol
!Alliance
|-
|1
|[[Communist Party of India]] (PWA)
|[[File:CPI symbol.svg|80px]]
|rowspan=4|[[Left Democratic Front]]
|-
|2
|[[Kerala Congress (M)]]
|[[File:Indian election symbol two leaves.svg|80px]]
|-
|3
|[[Janata Dal (Secular)]]
|[[File:Indian election symbol female farmer.svg|80px]]
|-
|4
|[[Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar)]]
|
|-
|5
|[[Indian Union Muslim League]]
|[[File:Indian Election Symbol Lader.svg|80px]]
|rowspan=2|[[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|United Democratic Front]]
|-
|6
|[[Revolutionary Socialist Party (India)|Revolutionary Socialist Party]]
|[[File:Indian Election Symbol Spade and Stoker.png|80px]]
|-
|}

== Electoral history ==
{{Main|Elections in Kerala}}
[[File:Kerala Council of Ministers 1957 EMS.jpg|thumb|right|420x420px|[[First Namboodiripad ministry|1st cabinet ministry]] of Kerala led by [[E. M. S. Namboodiripad]] (1957)]]
[[File:Kerala_Council_of_Ministers_1978_PK_Vasudevan_Nair.jpg|thumb|300x300px|Kerala Council of Ministers under [[P. K. Vasudevan Nair]] (1978)]]
Results for the [[Kerala Legislative Assembly]] (from 1957) have been:

[http://www.keralaassembly.org/ (Source)]

{|class="wikitable sortable"; text-align:center"
! rowspan="2" |Mandate
! colspan="3" |Seats secured
! colspan="2" rowspan="2" |Ruling C'''oalition(s)'''
|-
! style="color:{{party color|Communist Party of India}};"|'''CPI+'''
! style="color:{{party color|Indian National Congress}};"|'''INC+'''
|-
|[[1957 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1957]]
! style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Communist Party of India}}; color:white"|'''65'''<ref>{{Cite book|title=STATISTICAL REPORT ON GENERAL ELECTION, 1957 TO THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF KERALA|last=|publisher=Election Commission of India|location=New Delhi|pages=7|url=https://old.eci.gov.in/files/file/3746-kerala-1957/}}</ref> 
| 43<ref name="askh">DC Books, Kottayam, ''Kerala Charithram'', A. Shreedhara Menon, P.367-369</ref>
| colspan="2" style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Communist Party of India}}; color:white" |CPI+
|-
|[[1960 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1960]]
| 29<ref name="askh"/>
| style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Indian National Congress}}; color:white"|'''95'''<ref name="askh"/>
| colspan="2" style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Indian National Congress}}; color:white" |INC+
|-
|}
{|class="wikitable sortable"; text-align:center"
! rowspan="2" |Mandate
! colspan="2" |Seats secured
! colspan="2" rowspan="2" |Ruling C'''oalition(s)'''
|-
! style="color:{{party color|Communist Party of India (Marxist)}};"|'''CPI(M)'''
! style="color:{{party color|Indian National Congress}};"|'''INC+'''
|-
|[[1965 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1965]]
| 40
|36
| No Government Formed
|-
|[[1967 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1967]]
| style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Communist Party of India (Marxist)}}; color:white"|'''117'''
| 9
| style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Communist Party of India (Marxist)}}; color:white"|CPI(M)+
|-
|}
{|class="wikitable sortable"; text-align:center"
! rowspan="2" |Mandate
! colspan="3" |Seats secured
! colspan="2" rowspan="2" |Ruling C'''oalition(s)'''
|-
! style="color:{{party color|Communist Party of India (Marxist)}};"|'''CPI(M)+'''
! style="color:{{party color|Communist Party of India}};"|'''CPI'''
! style="color:{{party color|Indian National Congress}};"|'''INC'''
|-
|[[1970 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1970]]
| 29<ref name="kla">{{Cite web|url=https://kerala.gov.in/history-of-kerala-legislature|title=History of Kerala Legislature|access-date=20 May 2021|archive-date=14 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200814235820/https://kerala.gov.in/history-of-kerala-legislature|url-status=dead}}</ref>
! style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Communist Party of India}}; color:white"|'''16'''
! style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Indian National Congress}}; color:white"|'''30'''
! style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Communist Party of India}}; color:white" |CPI+INC
|-
|[[1977 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1977]]
| 29<ref name="kla"/>
! style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Communist Party of India}}; color:white"|'''23'''<ref name="kla"/>
| style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Indian National Congress}}; color:white"|'''38'''
! style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Communist Party of India}}; color:white" |CPI+INC
|-
|}
{|class="wikitable sortable"; text-align:center"
! rowspan="2" |Mandate
! colspan="3" |Seats secured
! rowspan="2" |Ruling C'''oalition'''
! rowspan="2" |Majority
|-
!style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | LDF!! style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | UDF!! Others
|-
|[[1980 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1980]]
|style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white"|'''93'''
|46
|1
|style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | LDF
|style="color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}};"|'''47'''
|-
|[[1982 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1982]] 
||63||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white|'''77'''|| 0 ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | UDF
|style="color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}};"|'''14'''
|-
|[[1987 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1987]] ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white"|'''78'''|| 61||1 ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | LDF
|style="color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}};"|'''17'''
|-
| [[1991 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1991]] || 48 || style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" |'''90'''|| 2 || style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | UDF
|style="color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}};"|'''40'''
|-
| [[1996 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|1996]] ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white"| '''80'''|| 59 || 1 ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | LDF
|style="color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}};"|'''21'''
|-
| [[2001 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|2001]] || 40 || style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white"|'''99'''|| 1 || style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | UDF
|style="color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}};"|'''59'''
|-
| [[2006 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|2006]] ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white"|'''98'''|| 42 || 0 ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | LDF
|style="color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}};"|'''56'''
|-
| [[2011 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|2011]] || 68 || style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white"|'''72'''|| 0 || style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | UDF
|style="color:{{party color|United Democratic Front (Kerala)}};"|'''04'''
|-
| [[2016 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|2016]] ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" |'''91'''|| 47 || 2 ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | LDF
|style="color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}};"|'''44'''
|-
| [[2021 Kerala Legislative Assembly election|2021]] ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white"|'''99'''|| 41 ||0 ||style="width:15%;"Style="background-color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}; color:white" | LDF 
|style="color:{{party color|Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}};"|'''58'''
|}

=== Current administrative structure by alliance ===
{| class="wikitable"; text-align:center"
! colspan=5 |Current administrative structure by alliance in Kerala
|-
! National Constituencies
! Total
!LDF
!UDF 
!Others
|-
| [[List of constituencies of the Lok Sabha|Lok Sabha constituencies]]
!20
|1
|18
|1
|-
|-
! State Constituencies
! Total
!LDF
!UDF 
!Others
|-
| [[List of constituencies of the Kerala Legislative Assembly|Legislative assembly constituencies]]
!140
|98
|41
|0
|-
! Local self-government body
! Total
! LDF
! UDF 
! Others
|-
|[[List of municipal corporations in Kerala|Municipal Corporations]] 
!6
|4
|2
|0
|-
|[[District Panchayat|District Panchayats]]
! 14
| 11
| 3
| 0
|-
|[[Municipalities of Kerala|Municipalities]]
!87
|43
|41
|2
|-
|[[Local government in Kerala|Block Panchayats]] 
!152
|90
|61
|0
|-
|[[Local government in Kerala|Grama Panchayats]]
!941
|549
|365
|27
|-
|}

== Popular vote ==
[[File:E._M._S._Namboodiripad.jpg|thumb|183x183px|[[E. M. S. Namboodiripad]], [[Communist Party of India|CPI]] (first Chief Minister of Kerala, 1957- 59)]]
{| class="wikitable collapsible"
! colspan="2" |1957 Assembly elections
! colspan="2" |2021 Assembly elections
|-
!Parties
!Popular vote %
!Parties
!Popular vote %
|-
|[[Indian National Congress]] (INC)
|37.84
|[[Communist Party of India (Marxist)|Communist Party of India Marxist]] (CPIM)
|25.4
|-
|[[Communist Party of India]] (CPI)
|35.28
|[[Indian National Congress]] (INC)
|25.1
|-
|[[Praja Socialist Party]] (PSP)
|10.76
|[[Bharatiya Janata Party]] (BJP)
|15.50
|-
|[[Revolutionary Socialist Party (India)|Revolutionary Socialist Party]] (RSP)
|3.22
|[[Indian Union Muslim League]] (IUML)
|8.3
|-
| colspan="2" rowspan="3" |
|[[Communist Party of India]] (CPI)
|7.6
|-
|[[Kerala Congress (Mani)]] (KCM)
|3.3
|-
|[[Kerala Congress]] (KEC)
|2.7
|}

== Ideologies ==
[[File:Pinarayi Vijayan 1.jpg|thumb|200x200px|[[Pinarayi Vijayan]], [[Chief minister of Kerala]]]]

=== Left-wing/center-left politics ===
The general socio-political thought and behavior of the Keralite population inclines strongly toward [[left-wing]] and [[center-left]] groups, as such, [[communist]] ([[Communist Party of India]], [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]]) parties have made strong inroads across the state for decades.<ref name=":0">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3693425.stm#kerala Snapshots - India's final voting day BBC News]</ref> In fact, Kerala is the first autonomous polity in Asia and only second in the world to have democratically elected a fully communist-led (Communist Party of India) government into power,<ref name=":0" /> with the first-ever being [[San Marino]], a [[microstate]] enclaved by Italy.

Northern Kerala, particularly the districts of [[Kannur]] and [[Palakkad]], is generally considered the heartland of communist support. The districts of [[Kollam]] and [[Alappuzha]] also generally inclined towards left-wing or center-left parties, even though the [[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|United Democratic Front]] have won elections from the constituencies of these districts several times.<ref name=":0" />

Some parties like [[Communist Marxist Party]], [[Janathipathiya Samrakshana Samithy]] and the [[Revolutionary Marxist Party of India]] also represent left-wing politics in the state.

=== Congress politics ===
[[Indian National Congress]] leads the [[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|United Democratic Front]] pre-poll alliance in Kerala. The alliance was created by the [[Indian National Congress|Congress]] (then known as [[Indira Gandhi|Congress-Indira]]) party leader [[K. Karunakaran]] in 1978.<ref>[http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/who-was-k-karunakaran-74555?trendingnow Who was K Karunakaran? – NDTV<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Since the 1980s, it has sustained itself as the front to take on the [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)|Communist Party of India Marxist]]-led [[Left Democratic Front (Kerala)|Left Democratic Front]].

The alliance first came into power in Kerala in 1981 under [[K. Karunakaran]]. It led the Kerala government in 1981 - 82 ([[K. Karunakaran|Karunakaran]]), 1982 - 87 ([[K. Karunakaran|Karunakaran]]), 1991 - 96 ([[K. Karunakaran|Karunakaran]] and [[A. K. Antony]]), 2001 - 06 ([[A. K. Antony|Antony]] and [[Oommen Chandy]]) and 2011 - 16 ([[Oommen Chandy|Chandy]]).

The party has strong bases in [[Ernakulam]] and [[Kottayam]] regions of central Kerala.

The [[Nationalist Congress Party- Sharadchandra Pawar]] and [[Congress (Secular)|Congress (S)]] are other parties which holds the Congress politics. Both of them were split from [[Indian National Congress]], and now form allies of [[Left Democratic Front (Kerala)|LDF]]. The [[Kerala Congress]] factions also have their origin in a split which occurred in Indian National Congress in the year 1964. [[Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran)|DIC(K)]] was another party formed by raising Congress politics in Kerala, but was later dissolved.

=== Communitarian politics ===
[[Indian Union Muslim League]] is a major member of the [[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|United Democratic Front]]. Indian Union Muslim League first gained a ministry in Kerala Government as part of a [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)|Communist Party of India Marxist]]-led alliance in the late 1960s. The party later switched fronts and formed an alliance with the [[Indian National Congress|Congress]]. It later became a chief constituent in a succession of [[Indian National Congress]]-lead ministries.

The party has strong bases in [[Malappuram District]] in central Kerala. The party is also strong in the northern belts of [[Kasaragod district]] and the southern parts of [[Kozhikode district]] in Northern Kerala.

[[Kerala Congress]], which has several factions in [[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|United Democratic Front]] and [[Left Democratic Front (Kerala)|Left Democratic Front]], has strong influence in central Kerala. The various Kerala Congress factions are primarily patronized by [[Saint Thomas Christians|Syrian Christian]] community mostly in Central Travancore areas like [[Kottayam]], [[Idukki]], [[Pathanamthitta]] and [[Muvattupuzha]].

=== Right-wing politics ===
Right-wing politics in Kerala is represented by the [[Bharatiya Janata Party]]. The BJP got their first seat in the Kerala legislative assembly in 2016. The BJP failed to win a seat in the 2021 elections. But won 1 seat in the 2024 elections.

== Coalition politics ==
[[File:Kerala_Council_of_Ministers_1957_EMS.jpg|thumb|362x362px|First Council of Ministers, EMS Namboothiripad Ministry]]
[[File:Kerala_Second_Niyamasabha_Ministry.png|thumb|361x361px|Second Council of Ministers]]
[[File:Kerala Council of Ministers 1977 1 Karunakaran (version 1).jpg|thumb|[[A. K. Antony]], [[K. Karunakaran]], [[K. M. Mani]] and [[C. H. Muhammed Koya]]|359x359px]]

The current politics in Kerala is largely dominated by two pre-poll alliances

* [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]]-led [[Left Democratic Front (Kerala)|Left Democratic Front (LDF)]] and
* [[Indian National Congress]]-led [[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|United Democratic Front (UDF)]]

The two alliances have been alternatively voted to power in Kerala since 1980 till 2021 (from the [[First E. K. Nayanar ministry]] and until [[First Pinarayi Vijayan ministry]]).

The pre-poll political alliances of Kerala have stabilized strongly in such a manner that, with rare exceptions, most of the coalition partners stick their loyalty to the respective alliances ([[Left Democratic Front (Kerala)|Left Democratic Front]] or [[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|United Democratic Front]]). As a result of this, ever since 1979, the power has been clearly alternating between the two alliances without any exceptions, until this spell was broken in the [[2021 Kerala Legislative Assembly election]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-05-02|title=Rewriting history: Pinarayi Vijayan breaks 4-decade-old political trend in Kerala|url=https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/rewriting-history-pinarayi-vijayan-breaks-4-decade-old-political-trend-kerala-148169|access-date=2021-05-11|website=The News Minute|language=en}}</ref>

However, till then the political scenario in Kerala (1957 - 1980) was characterized by continually shifting alliances, party mergers and splits, factionalism within the coalitions and within political parties, and the formation of a numerous splinter groups.<ref name="UN1">{{cite web|date=19 March 2007|title=India|url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/country,,AUS_RRT,,IND,,4b6fe22b5,0.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130416005158/http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/country,,AUS_RRT,,IND,,4b6fe22b5,0.html|archive-date=16 April 2013|publisher=Australia: Refugee Review Tribunal|via=archive.is|accessdate=11 August 2019}}</ref>
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, two main pre-poll political alliances were formed: the [[Left Democratic Front (Kerala)|Left Democratic Front]], led by the [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]] and [[Communist Party of India]] and the [[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|United Democratic Front]], led by the [[Indian National Congress]].<ref name="UN1" />

Since the early 1980s these two pre-poll political alliances have alternated in government with neither able to gain re-election for a second term. Clashes between supporters of the two coalitions have occurred periodically. Both have accused the other of corruption, promoting or condoning political violence, and "the general breakdown of law and order" during their periods in government.<ref name="UN1" /> 
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Mandate
!Ministry
No.
!Ruling C'''oalition'''
Name
|-
|2021
|23
|LDF 
|-
|2016 
|22
|LDF
|-
|2011
|21
|UDF
|-
|2006
|20
|LDF
|-
| rowspan="2" |2001
|19
| rowspan="2" |UDF
|-
|18
|-
|1996
|17
|LDF
|-
| rowspan="2" |1991
|16
| rowspan="2" |UDF
|-
|15
|-
|1987
|14
|LDF
|-
|1982
|13
| rowspan="2" |UDF
|-
| rowspan="2" |1980
|12
|-
|11
|LDF
|-
| rowspan="4" |1977
|10
| rowspan="7" |—
|-
|9
|-
|8
|-
|7
|-
|1970
|6
|-
| rowspan="2" |1967
|5
|-
|4
|-
|1965
|
|No ministry formed
|-
| rowspan="2" |1960
|3
| rowspan="3" |—
|-
|2
|-
|1957
|1
|}

== Student politics ==
* [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)|Communist Party of India Marxist]] - [[Students' Federation of India|Student Federation of India (SFI)]], [[Democratic Youth Federation of India|Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI)]]
* [[Indian National Congress]] - [[Kerala Students Union]] (KSU)
* [[Communist Party of India]] - [[All India Students' Federation|All India Students' Federation (AISF)]]
* [[Indian Union Muslim League]] - [[Muslim Students Federation (Kerala unit)|Muslim Students Federation - MSF]] (MSF)
* [[Bharatiya Janata Party]] - [[Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad]] (ABVP)

== 2021 Assembly elections ==
 
{| class="wikitable collapsible"
! LDF
! Seats
! UDF
! Seats
|-
|[[Communist Party of India (Marxist)|CPI(M)]]
|62
|[[Indian National Congress|INC]]
|21
|-
|[[Communist Party of India|CPI]]
|17
|[[Indian Union Muslim League|IUML]]
|15
|-
|[[Left Democratic Front (Kerala)|LDF Independent]]
|5
|[[Kerala Congress|KEC]]
|2
|-
|[[Kerala Congress (M)|KC(M)]]
|5
|[[Kerala Congress (Jacob)|KC(J)]]
|1
|-
|[[Janata Dal (Secular)|JD(S)]]
|2
|[[Revolutionary Marxist Party of India|RMPI]]
|1
|-
|[[Nationalist Congress Party|NCP]]
|2
|[[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|UDF Independent]]
|1
|-
|[[Congress (Secular)|C(S)]]
|1
|[[Revolutionary Socialist Party (India)|RSP]]
|0
|-
|[[Kerala Congress (B)|KC(B)]]
|1
|[[Communist Marxist Party|CMP]]
|0
|-
|[[National Secular Conference|NSC]]
|1
|
|
|-
|[[Indian National League|INL]]
|1
|
|
|-
|[[Janadhipathya Kerala Congress|JKC]]
|1
|
|
|-
|[[Loktantrik Janata Dal|LJD]]
|1
|
|
|-
|[[Indian National League|INL]]
|0
|
|
|-
| style="background:#ffffff;" |'''[[Left Democratic Front|LDF]]'''
| style="background:#ffffff; color:black;" |'''99'''
| style="background:#ffffff;" |'''[[United Democratic Front (Kerala)|UDF]]'''
| style="background:#ffffff; color:black;" |'''41'''
|}
{| class="wikitable collapsible"
! rowspan="2" |Parties
! colspan="2" |Popular vote
! colspan="2" |Seats
|-
!Votes
!%
!Candidates
!Won
|-
|[[Communist Party of India (Marxist)|Communist Party of India Marxist (CPIM)]]
|5,288,502 
|25.4
|77
|62
|-
|[[Indian National Congress|Indian National Congress (INC)]]
|5,233,429
|25.1
|93
|21
|-
|[[Bharatiya Janata Party|Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)]]
|2,354,468 
|11.3
|113
|0
|-
|[[Indian Union Muslim League|Indian Union Muslim League (IUML)]]
|1,723,593
|8.3
|25
|15
|-
|[[Communist Party of India|Communist Party of India (CPI)]]
|1,579,235 
|7.6
|23
|17
|-
|[[Kerala Congress (M)|Kerala Congress (Mani) (KCM)]]
|684,363 
|3.3
|12
|5
|-
|[[Kerala Congress (Secular)|Kerala Congress (KEC)]]
|554,115 
|2.7
|10
|2
|}

==See also==
*[[Political parties in Kerala]]
*[[Communist Party of India (Marxist), Kerala]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* {{Citation|title=Chief Ministers, Ministers, and Leaders of  Opposition of Kerala|last=|publisher=Secratriat of [[Kerala Legislative Assembly|Kerala Legislature]]|year=2018|location=[[Thiruvananthapuram]]|url=http://www.niyamasabha.org/codes/14kla/chief%20ministers,%20ministers,%20leaders%20of%20opposition.pdf}}
* {{Cite book|title=Mathrubhumi Yearbook Plus - 2019 (Malayalam Edition)|publisher=P. V. Chandran, Managing Editor, Mathrubhumi Printing & Publishing Company Limited, Kozhikode|year=2018|location=Kozhikode|last=Chandran |first=VP}}
* {{cite book|author=Menon, A. Sreedhara |title=A Survey of Kerala History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FVsw35oEBv4C|year=2007|publisher=DC Books|isbn=9788126415786}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Politics of Kerala}}
{{Politics of India by state or territory}}
{{Kerala}}
{{Kerala topics}}
{{Left Democratic Front (Kerala)}}
{{United Democratic Front (Kerala)}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Politics Of Kerala}}
[[Category:Politics of Kerala]]