Political System of Kerala | |
---|---|
Polity type | Democratic |
Constitution | Constitution of India |
Formation | 1950 |
Legislative branch | |
Name | Kerala Legislative Assembly |
Type | Unicameral |
Meeting place | Assembly Building |
Presiding officer | A. N. Shamseer, Speaker |
Executive branch | |
Head of state | |
Title | Governor |
Currently | Arif Mohammad Khan |
Head of government | |
Title | Chief Minister |
Currently | Pinarayi Vijayan |
Appointer | Governor |
Cabinet | |
Name | Cabinet of Kerala |
Current cabinet | Cabinet Vijayan |
Leader | Chief Minister |
Appointer | Governor |
Judicial branch | |
Name | Judiciary of India |
Kerala High Court | |
Chief judge | S. Manikumar |
Seat | Kochi |
Kerala is an Indian state, where federal legislative power is vested in the 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 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).
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 (Indian Lower House) and nine seats in the Rajya Sabha (the Council of States). Elections are also held to choose representatives to the civic bodies at various levels within Kerala.
Sl No | Alliance Name | Flag | Current Status |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Left Democratic Front (LDF) | Government | |
2 | United Democratic Front (UDF) | Opposition | |
3 | National Democratic Alliance ( NDA ) | None | |
Sl No | Party Name | Symbol | Alliance | Current Status |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Communist Party of India (Marxist) | LDF | Government | |
2 | Indian National Congress | UDF | Opposition | |
3 | Bharatiya Janata Party | NDA | None |
Sr No | Party Name | Symbol | Alliance |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Communist Party of India (PWA) | Left Democratic Front | |
2 | Kerala Congress (M) | ||
3 | Janata Dal (Secular) | ||
4 | Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) | ||
5 | Indian Union Muslim League | United Democratic Front | |
6 | Revolutionary Socialist Party | ||
Results for the Kerala Legislative Assembly (from 1957) have been:
Mandate | Seats secured | Ruling Coalition(s) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
CPI+ | INC+ | ||||
1957 | 65 [1] | 43 [2] | CPI+ | ||
1960 | 29 [2] | 95 [2] | INC+ | ||
Mandate | Seats secured | Ruling Coalition(s) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
CPI(M) | INC+ | |||
1965 | 40 | 36 | No Government Formed | |
1967 | 117 | 9 | CPI(M)+ | |
Mandate | Seats secured | Ruling Coalition(s) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
CPI(M)+ | CPI | INC | |||
1970 | 29 [3] | 16 | 30 | CPI+INC | |
1977 | 29 [3] | 23 [3] | 38 | CPI+INC | |
Mandate | Seats secured | Ruling Coalition | Majority | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
LDF | UDF | Others | |||
1980 | 93 | 46 | 1 | LDF | 47 |
1982 | 63 | 77 | 0 | UDF | 14 |
1987 | 78 | 61 | 1 | LDF | 17 |
1991 | 48 | 90 | 2 | UDF | 40 |
1996 | 80 | 59 | 1 | LDF | 21 |
2001 | 40 | 99 | 1 | UDF | 59 |
2006 | 98 | 42 | 0 | LDF | 56 |
2011 | 68 | 72 | 0 | UDF | 04 |
2016 | 91 | 47 | 2 | LDF | 44 |
2021 | 99 | 41 | 0 | LDF | 58 |
Current administrative structure by alliance in Kerala | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
National Constituencies | Total | LDF | UDF | Others |
Lok Sabha constituencies | 20 | 1 | 18 | 1 |
State Constituencies | Total | LDF | UDF | Others |
Legislative assembly constituencies | 140 | 98 | 41 | 0 |
Local self-government body | Total | LDF | UDF | Others |
Municipal Corporations | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
District Panchayats | 14 | 11 | 3 | 0 |
Municipalities | 87 | 43 | 41 | 2 |
Block Panchayats | 152 | 90 | 61 | 0 |
Grama Panchayats | 941 | 549 | 365 | 27 |
1957 Assembly elections | 2021 Assembly elections | ||
---|---|---|---|
Parties | Popular vote % | Parties | Popular vote % |
Indian National Congress (INC) | 37.84 | 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 (RSP) | 3.22 | Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) | 8.3 |
Communist Party of India (CPI) | 7.6 | ||
Kerala Congress (Mani) (KCM) | 3.3 | ||
Kerala Congress (KEC) | 2.7 |
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. [4] 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, [4] 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 have won elections from the constituencies of these districts several times. [4]
Some parties like Communist Marxist Party, Janathipathiya Samrakshana Samithy and the Revolutionary Marxist Party of India also represent left-wing politics in the state.
Indian National Congress leads the United Democratic Front pre-poll alliance in Kerala. The alliance was created by the Congress (then known as Congress-Indira) party leader K. Karunakaran in 1978. [5] Since the 1980s, it has sustained itself as the front to take on the Communist Party of India Marxist-led Left Democratic Front.
The alliance first came into power in Kerala in 1981 under K. Karunakaran. It led the Kerala government in 1981 - 82 (Karunakaran), 1982 - 87 (Karunakaran), 1991 - 96 (Karunakaran and A. K. Antony), 2001 - 06 (Antony and Oommen Chandy) and 2011 - 16 (Chandy).
The party has strong bases in Ernakulam and Kottayam regions of central Kerala.
The Nationalist Congress Party- Sharadchandra Pawar and Congress (S) are other parties which holds the Congress politics. Both of them were split from Indian National Congress, and now form allies of LDF. The Kerala Congress factions also have their origin in a split which occurred in Indian National Congress in the year 1964. DIC(K) was another party formed by raising Congress politics in Kerala, but was later dissolved.
Indian Union Muslim League is a major member of the United Democratic Front. Indian Union Muslim League first gained a ministry in Kerala Government as part of a Communist Party of India Marxist-led alliance in the late 1960s. The party later switched fronts and formed an alliance with the 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 and Left Democratic Front, has strong influence in central Kerala. The various Kerala Congress factions are primarily patronized by Syrian Christian community mostly in Central Travancore areas like Kottayam, Idukki, Pathanamthitta and Muvattupuzha.
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.
The current politics in Kerala is largely dominated by two pre-poll alliances
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 or 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. [6]
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. [7] In the late 1970s and early 1980s, two main pre-poll political alliances were formed: the Left Democratic Front, led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Communist Party of India and the United Democratic Front, led by the Indian National Congress. [7]
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. [7]
Mandate | Ministry No. | Ruling Coalition Name |
---|---|---|
2021 | 23 | LDF |
2016 | 22 | LDF |
2011 | 21 | UDF |
2006 | 20 | LDF |
2001 | 19 | UDF |
18 | ||
1996 | 17 | LDF |
1991 | 16 | UDF |
15 | ||
1987 | 14 | LDF |
1982 | 13 | UDF |
1980 | 12 | |
11 | LDF | |
1977 | 10 | — |
9 | ||
8 | ||
7 | ||
1970 | 6 | |
1967 | 5 | |
4 | ||
1965 | No ministry formed | |
1960 | 3 | — |
2 | ||
1957 | 1 |
LDF | Seats | UDF | Seats |
---|---|---|---|
CPI(M) | 62 | INC | 21 |
CPI | 17 | IUML | 15 |
LDF Independent | 5 | KEC | 2 |
KC(M) | 5 | KC(J) | 1 |
JD(S) | 2 | RMPI | 1 |
NCP | 2 | UDF Independent | 1 |
C(S) | 1 | RSP | 0 |
KC(B) | 1 | CMP | 0 |
NSC | 1 | ||
INL | 1 | ||
JKC | 1 | ||
LJD | 1 | ||
INL | 0 | ||
LDF | 99 | UDF | 41 |
Parties | Popular vote | Seats | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Votes | % | Candidates | Won | |
Communist Party of India Marxist (CPIM) | 5,288,502 | 25.4 | 77 | 62 |
Indian National Congress (INC) | 5,233,429 | 25.1 | 93 | 21 |
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) | 2,354,468 | 11.3 | 113 | 0 |
Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) | 1,723,593 | 8.3 | 25 | 15 |
Communist Party of India (CPI) | 1,579,235 | 7.6 | 23 | 17 |
Kerala Congress (Mani) (KCM) | 684,363 | 3.3 | 12 | 5 |
Kerala Congress (KEC) | 554,115 | 2.7 | 10 | 2 |
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (abbreviated as CPI(M)) is a communist political party in India. It is the largest communist party in India in terms of membership and electoral seats, and one of the national parties of India. The party was founded through a splitting from the Communist Party of India in 1964 and it quickly became the dominant faction.
The Left Democratic Front (LDF) is an alliance of left-wing political parties led by Communist Party of India (Marxist) in the Indian state of Kerala. It is the current ruling political alliance of Kerala, since 2016. It is one of the two major political alliances in Kerala, the other being Indian National Congress-led United Democratic Front, each of which has been in power alternately for the last four decades. LDF has won the elections to the State Legislature of Kerala in the years 1980, 1987, 1996, 2006, 2016 and had a historic re-election in 2021 where an incumbent government was re-elected for first time in 40 years. LDF has won 6 out of 10 elections since the formation of the alliance in 1980. The alliance consists of CPI(M), CPI and various smaller parties.
Kerala Congress is an Indian political party founded in Kottayam, Kerala in October 1964, by a block of former Indian National Congress leaders led by K. M. George. The party is primarily active in central Kerala. Initially its main support came from the Syrian Christians of central Kerala and the Nair community of southern Kerala.
The United Democratic Front (UDF) is the Indian National Congress-led alliance of centre to centre-right political parties in the Indian state of Kerala. It is one of the two major political alliances in Kerala, the other being Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front, each of which has been in power alternately since 1980 E. K. Nayanar ministry. Most of the United Democratic Front constituents are members of the Indian National Congress-led Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance at pan-India level.
The Government of Kerala, also known as the Kerala Government, is the administrative body responsible for governing Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. The chief minister and their most senior ministers belong to the supreme decision-making committee, known as the cabinet.
Kannoth Muraleedharan is an Indian National Congress politician. He was the MP from Vatakara, Kerala. He lost the 2024 Lok Sabha election from Thrissur constituency. He is the son of Congress leader K. Karunakaran. He was elected as an MP from Kozhikode constituency and from Vatakara constituency (2019). He was elected as an MLA from Vattiyoorkkavu constituency.
Communism in India has existed as a social or political ideology as well as a political movement since at least as early as the 1920s. In its early years, communist ideology was harshly suppressed through legal prohibitions and criminal prosecutions. Eventually, communist parties became ensconced in national party politics, sprouting several political offshoots.
The Kerala Legislative Assembly election of 1967 was held to constitute the fourth assembly in Kerala.
Legislative Assembly elections were held in the Indian state of West Bengal in 1991. The election took place simultaneously with the 1991 Indian general election. The term of the assembly elected in 1987 lasted until February 1992, but the West Bengal Government asked the Election Commission of India to arrange the election at an earlier date.
United Front, known until 1971 as Mini Front (1970–1971) and as Maxi Front (1971–1979) thereafter, was a coalition of political parties in Kerala state, India, which was the ruling combine in the state from 1970 to 1979. The coalition was formed by five political parties immediately before the 1970 Kerala Legislative Assembly election. It saw the inclusion a few other parties in the following years.
Kerala's major political parties are aligned under two coalitions, namely the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the United Democratic Front (UDF) since the late 1970s. Kerala was the first Indian state to have coalition government as early as 1961 .
The 2021 Kerala Legislative Assembly election was held in Kerala on 6 April 2021 to elect 140 members to the 15th Kerala Legislative Assembly. The results were declared on 2 May.
The 1999 Indian general election was held to elect 20 members to the thirteenth Lok Sabha from Kerala. Indian National Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) won 11 seats, while the Left Democratic Front (LDF), led by Communist Party of India (Marxist) won the remaining 9 seats. Both coalitions won the same number of seats as in the previous election, held in the previous year. Turnout for the election was measured at 70.19% of the eligible population.
The 1998 Indian general election were held to elect 20 members to the twelfth Lok Sabha from Kerala. Indian National Congress (INC)-led United Democratic Front (UDF) won 11 seats, while the Left Democratic Front (LDF), led by Communist Party of India (Marxist) won the remaining 9 seats. The earlier election in 1996 saw both alliances win equal share of seats. Turnout for the election was at 70.66%
The 1996 Indian general election were held to elect 20 members to the eleventh Lok Sabha from Kerala. Both Indian National Congress (INC)-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and Left Democratic Front (LDF), led by Communist Party of India (Marxist) won 10 seats each. Turnout for the election was at 70.66%
The 1991 Indian general election were held to elect 20 members to the tenth Lok Sabha from Kerala. Indian National Congress (INC)-led United Democratic Front (UDF) won 16 seats while Left Democratic Front (LDF), led by Communist Party of India (Marxist) won the remaining 4 seats. Turnout for the election was at 70.66% In the Lok Sabha, INC formed a minority government under the premiership of P. V. Narasimha Rao.
The 1989 Indian general election were held to elect 20 members to the ninth Lok Sabha from Kerala. Indian National Congress (INC)-led United Democratic Front (UDF) won 17 seats while Left Democratic Front (LDF), led by Communist Party of India (Marxist) won the remaining 3 seats. Turnout for the election was at 79.30% In the Lok Sabha, INC won plurality of seats, however Janata Dal (JD), led by V. P. Singh formed the government, albeit a short-lived one, with support from BJP and CPI(M).
Elections to local bodies in Kerala were held in two phrases, on 2 and 5 November 2015. The Left Democratic Front (LDF) won more than half of all gram panchayats and municipalities, and both they and the United Democratic Front (UDF) won majorities in seven out of fourteen district panchayats each. The LDF also won mayorship in four corporations and the UDF in two.
The 1984 Indian general election were held to elect 20 members to the eighth Lok Sabha from Kerala. Indian National Congress (INC)-led United Democratic Front (UDF) won 18 seats while Left Democratic Front (LDF), led by Communist Party of India (Marxist) won just 2 seats. Turnout for the election was at 77.12% In the Lok Sabha, INC won by a landslide and its leader Rajiv Gandhi went on to become the Prime Minister of India.
Elections to local bodies in Kerala were held in December 2020. Polling took place over 3 days; on 8, 10 and 14 December, with the votes counted and results announced on 16 December.