Senior Congress leader and Kottayam MLA Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan has been elected as the Speaker of the 16th Kerala Legislative Assembly, securing 101 votes in the election held on Friday
The victory solidifies the ruling United Democratic Front (UDF) coalition’s strong numerical majority within the state’s 140-seat legislature
For the first time in the history of the Kerala Legislative Assembly, candidates from three distinct political alliances contested the Speaker’s position. Out of 140 total assembly members, pro tem Speaker G Sudhakaran abstained from voting. Of the 139 votes polled, Radhakrishnan, fielded by the ruling UDF, secured 101 votes. While the LDF’s AC Moideen received 35 votes, the BJP’s BB Gopakumar polled three votes
Chief Minister V. D. Satheesan and Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan jointly escorted Radhakrishnan to the Speaker’s chair, following his . In his inaugural media address post-election, Radhakrishnan emphasized that he will maintain complete legislative neutrality while running the assembly
Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan is becoming the Speaker of the Assembly with a legacy of more than fifty years of political activity and three and a half decades of parliamentary experience. The rigidity of his stances and simplicity of his interventions distinguish Thiruvanchoor, who is also a former Home Minister.
Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan has been a member of the Legislative Assembly since 1991. He served as minister for Water Resources , Irrigation and Parliamentary Affairs in the A. K. Antony Ministry during 2001 – 2004. He also served as Home Minister in the Oommen Chandy government from April 2012 to January 2014.
In the 2026 Assembly election, he won from Kottayam with a margin of nearly 36,000 votes