Vijay Invited to Form Government in Tamil Nadu After Securing Majority Support

Chennai, May 2026 : In a dramatic political development that brought an end to days of uncertainty in Tamil Nadu, C. Joseph Vijay was on Saturday officially invited by Governor-in-charge Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar to form the next government in the state after successfully demonstrating majority support in the 234-member Assembly.

The announcement marked a major milestone for the actor-turned-politician and his party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), which emerged as the single-largest party in the recently concluded Assembly elections.

Vijay met the Governor at Lok Bhavan in Chennai and formally submitted a letter informing him of his election as the leader of the TVK Legislature Party. He also presented letters of support from alliance and supporting parties, including the Congress, the Communist Party of India (CPI), the Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI(M), the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML).

Following the meeting, Raj Bhavan issued an official statement confirming that Governor Arlekar had appointed Vijay as the Chief Minister-designate of Tamil Nadu and invited him to form the Ministry.

The Governor also instructed Vijay to prove his majority on the floor of the Tamil Nadu Assembly on or before May 13. Raj Bhavan further announced that the swearing-in ceremony would take place at Chennai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium at 10 a.m. on Sunday.

The development came after TVK successfully secured the support of 120 MLAs, comfortably crossing the majority mark of 118 required to form the government in the 234-member Assembly.

According to the final numbers, the TVK-led bloc now enjoys the support of 107 TVK legislators, five Congress MLAs, and two legislators each from the CPI, CPI(M), VCK and IUML.

Tamil Nadu Assembly elections were held in a single phase on April 23 and witnessed a fierce four-cornered contest involving the DMK, the AIADMK alliance, Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK), and the newly launched TVK.

When the results were declared on May 4, TVK emerged as the single-largest party with 108 seats. However, after Vijay chose to retain only one of the two constituencies from which he had contested and won, the party’s effective strength in the Assembly was reduced to 107.

Following the fractured verdict, intense political negotiations unfolded in Chennai, with TVK opening channels of communication with multiple parties to secure the numbers needed for government formation.

The CPI and CPI(M) were among the earliest parties to extend support to Vijay, followed later by Congress, VCK and IUML, which eventually pushed the alliance beyond the majority mark.

Soon after the Governor’s announcement, celebrations erupted among TVK supporters across Tamil Nadu. Party cadres gathered outside the party headquarters in Chennai and in several districts, bursting crackers, waving party flags and distributing sweets as preparations began for Vijay’s swearing-in as the next Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.