Congress pre-election TVK alliance offer is now moot after May 4 results

Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president K. Selvaperunthagai’s conditional alliance offer to actor-politician Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) — demanding 25 seats and a written pact before any front was formalised — has been overtaken by events. The 2026 Tamil Nadu assembly election was held on April 23, 2026, with results declared on May 4, 2026. Selvaperunthagai himself lost his Sriperumbudur constituency seat in that election.

What the offer said

Selvaperunthagai had stated TNCC would not enter any TVK-led front without a written agreement naming specific constituencies for Congress candidates, with 25 seats as the floor. He cited the party’s organisational presence across all 38 Tamil Nadu districts as justification.

TNCC also demanded TVK declare whether it intended to break from or work alongside the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA). Congress had been an SPA constituent since 2019. The DMK alliance swept 38 of 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry at the 2019 general election.

“We are open to discussions with TVK, but any alliance must respect Congress’s organisational strength across Tamil Nadu’s 38 districts. There will be no unconditional support.”

K. Selvaperunthagai, TNCC President · Press statement, Chennai · 05 May 2026

TVK’s position before polling

TVK, founded by Vijay in 2024 and registered with the Election Commission of India the same year, positioned itself as an alternative to both the DMK and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK). Its first state conference in October 2024 at Vikravandi, Villupuram district, drew a crowd TVK claimed exceeded 1 lakh delegates.

The party ran district-level membership drives across all 38 districts, with Coimbatore, Salem, and Madurai listed as priority zones. TVK had not responded to the TNCC offer before the election schedule made the 30-day deadline irrelevant.

Why Congress numbers mattered

Congress polled roughly 4.3% of the statewide vote in 2021 while contesting 25 seats, winning 18. That vote share, concentrated in specific constituencies, carried potential value for any front in marginal seats. An alliance with TVK would have required Congress to exit the DMK-led SPA — a move that would also have fractured the SPA’s existing seat calculations.

AIADMK, led by Edappadi K. Palaniswami, contested the 2026 election in opposition after losing power in 2021.

What happens next

With results declared on May 4, 2026, the question of TNCC’s alliance position is now post-election. The TNCC will reconstitute its leadership following Selvaperunthagai’s electoral defeat; Congress’s state-level direction for the next assembly cycle will depend on who the All India Congress Committee (AICC) appoints as TNCC president.