The Bharatiya Janata Party – Kerala , is the Kerala state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a major national political party in India. While BJP has held significant power at the national level, its influence in Kerala has historically been limited, given the dominance of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and on the other side, the United Democratic Front (UDF) alliance particularly the Indian National Congress.
Despite this, the party has steadily built a base in urban pockets through active participation in socio-political movements and national support since the premiership of Narendra Modi in form of media dominance, corporate funding and organisational expansion. Historically a minor player in Kerala's electoral politics, BJP won its first assembly constituency in 2016 by winning in Nemom and Suresh Gopi became the first BJP MP elected from Kerala in 2024. BJP Kerala is headquartered in Thiruvananthapuram and is currently led by Rajeev Chandrasekhar. It currently has 3 seats in Kerala state legislative assembly.
The party won its first ever MLA from Kerala in 2016 when party veteran O. Rajagopal defeated V. Sivankutty of the CPI(M) in Nemom. However, the party lost the Nemom seat in the 2021 election by a narrow margin. The party won its first-ever Lok Sabha MP from the state in 2024 when actor-turned politician Suresh Gopi defeated V. S. Sunil Kumar of the CPI(M) in Thrissur by a margin of 74,686 votes, marking a significant event for the party in Kerala that has historically been dominated by the Communist-led LDF and Congress-led UDF.
History The BJP's roots in Kerala trace back to the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, established in 1951. After the formation of BJP in 1980, the Kerala unit was officially organized, aiming to expand the party's ideology in a state dominated by the Congress and Left parties.
Key milestones 1980s–90s: Limited electoral success; groundwork through the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) network. 1991: First notable impact in the Assembly elections. 2004–2014: Emergence in urban areas like Thiruvananthapuram and Palakkad. 2016: Historic breakthrough with O. Rajagopal winning the Nemom Assembly seat—the first BJP MLA in Kerala. 2021: BJP Kerala Lost Nemom and failed to win any Assembly seats, but gained vote share in several constituencies. 2024: Suresh Gopi, a popular Malayalam actor and Rajya Sabha MP, wins the Thrissur Lok Sabha seat, marking BJP's first-ever victory in Lok Sabha election from Kerala.This victory was seen as a symbolic and strategic breakthrough for the party in Kerala. 2025: Rajeev Chandrasekhar appointed as the new State President on 24 March 2025 2025: The 2025 Kerala Local Body Elections marked a historic political breakthrough for the BJP/NDA, with the alliance winning Kerala’s first-ever Municipal Corporation by emerging as the single largest front in Thiruvananthapuram, securing 26 Gram Panchayats across multiple districts, strengthening its presence in key municipalities like Palakkad and Thrippunithura, and signaling the rise of a competitive third front as the party expanded its urban footprint, deepened grassroots influence, and reshaped Kerala’s traditionally bipolar political landscape. 2026: In the 2026 Kerala Legislative Assembly election, Bharatiya Janata Party achieved its best-ever performance in the state, winning three seats (Nemom, Kazhakoottam, and Chathannoor) and securing its first multi-seat representation in the assembly.
Organizational Structure
The following is the current organizational structure of the Bharatiya Janata Party – Kerala as of July 2025:
BJP Kerala Organizational Structure (2025) Position Name State President Rajeev Chandrasekhar General Secretaries M. T. Ramesh Sobha Surendran S. Suresh Anoop Antony Joseph Vice Presidents K. S. Radhakrishnan C. Sadanandan P. Sudheer C. Krishnakumar B. Gopalakrishnan Dr. Abdul Salam R. Sreelekha (Retd. IPS) K. Soman K. K. Aneesh Kumar Shaun George State Secretaries Ashokan Kulanada K. Ranjith Renu Suresh V. V. Rajesh Pandalam Prathapan Jiji Joseph M. V. Gopakumar Poonthura Sreekumar P. Shyamraj M. P. Anjana Ranjith State Spokesperson Palode Santhosh Treasurer E. Krishnadas Social Media Convener Abhijith R. Nair Media Convener Sandeep Somanath State Cell Coordinator V. K. Sajeevan Zonal Presidents K. Sreekanth V. Unnikrishnan A. Nagesh N. Hari B. B. Gopakumar
List of State Presidents - BJP Kerala ++President of Bharatiya Janata Party, KeralaS.No.PortraitName(born /death)Term in officeAssumed officeLeft officeTime in office1O. Rajagopal(b. 15 September 1929)198019852 K. G. MararK. G. Marar(b. 1934- d. 1995)19851990199419953K. Raman Pillai199019944K. V. Sreedharan Master199519985C. K. Padmanabhan(b. 1 January 1949)199820036P. S. Sreedharan Pillai(b. 1 December 1954)20032006201820197P. K. Krishna Das200620098V. Muraleedharan(b. 12 December 1958)200920159Kummanam Rajasekharan(b. 23 December 1952)2015201810K. Surendran(b. 10 March 1970)2 February 202023 March 202511Rajeev Chandrasekhar(b. 31 May 1964) 24 March 2025Incumbent
Electoral Performance : Lok Sabha Elections in Keralam Over the years, the Bharatiya Janatha Party (BJP) has worked to expand its presence in Kerala's political landscape, particularly through its participation in Lok Sabha elections. Although the party won its first parliamentary seat in 2024, it has made notable inroads in several constituencies reflecting a gradual increase in public support. The table below outlines BJP's performance in various Lok Sabha elections in Kerala, highlighting its vote share, seats won, and outcome.
The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of India, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past-the-post system to represent their respective constituencies, and they hold their seats for five years or until the body is dissolved by the president of India on the advice of the union council of ministers. The house meets in the Lok Sabha chamber of the Parliament House in New Delhi.
++Lok Sabha Election Performance Election Year Leader Alliance SeatsPopular vote Sitting side seats contested seats won +/- in seats Votes votes % ±ppJanata Party 19803 -5,22,321 6.7% 19841 12,32,339 2.1% 4.6% Bharatiya Janata Party 1984 Atal Bihari VajpayeeNone19 - 1,91,120 1.8% New 1989Lal Krishna Advani19 - 6,72,613 4.5% 2.7% 199119 - 6,56,945 4.6% 0.1% 1996Atal Bihari Vajpayee18 - 8,07,607 5.6% 1% 199820 - 11,92,046 8% 2.4% 1999NDA14 - 10,08,047 6.6% 1.4% 2004Lal Krishna Advani19 - 15,66,569 10.4% 3.8% 200919 - 10,11,563 6.3% 4.1% 2014Narendra Modi18 - 18,56,750 10.5% 4.2% 201915 - 26,35,810 13% 2.5% 202416 1 32,96,354 16.8% 3.8%
Elected Members to Lok Sabha election in Kerala ++Members of the Lok SabhaS.No.PortraitNameElectionConstituencyVotes ReceivedVote %Vote MarginPosition HeldPrime MinisterNo.Name2024 Indian general election in KeralaFirst elected BJP MP from Kerala 1. Suresh Gopi 2024 10 Thrissur 4,12,338 37.80% 74,686Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry of Tourism (India)()Narendra Modi III
2024 Lok Sabha election in Kerala
Electoral Performance : Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections The Bharatiya Janatha Party (BJP) has steadily expanded its efforts in Kerala's state politics, contesting Assembly elections with the goal of emerging as a signinficant political force. Despite the dominance of the CPI(M)-led LDF and the Congress-led UDF, the BJP marked a historic breakthrough in the 2016 Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections, when O. Rajagopal won from Nemom constituency, becoming the first BJP MLA in the state's history. While the party was unable to retain the seat in the 2021 elections, its growing vote share in key constituencies reflects an evolving support base and continued political relevance within Kerala's complex electoral landscape. In 2026 election, BJP created history by winning 3 seats in history. That allows BJP to get their Kerala State Govt sponsored Parliamentary party office in the Kerala Legislative Assembly for the first time ever. YearAssemblyLeaderSeats contestedSeats won(+/-) in seats% of votesVote swingPopular voteOutcome19827th692.75%2,63,33119878th1165.56% 2.817,08,26119919th1374.76% 0.806,74,525199610th1275.48% 0.727,81,090200111th1235.02% 0.467,89,764200612th1364.75% 0.277,38,244201113th1386.03% 1.2810,53,654201614th98 110.53% 4.5021,29,726202115th115 111.30% 0.7723,54,656202616thRajeev Chandrasekhar98 311.49% 0.1924,66,178 Elected Members to Kerala Legislative Assembly
Member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly ++Member of the Kerala Legislative AssemblyS.No.PortraitNameElectionConstituencyVotes ReceivedVote %Vote MarginPosition HeldRemarksDistrict.No.Name2026 Kerala Legislative Assembly election 01. B. B. Gopakumar2026 Kollam 126Chathannoor 51,923 38.044,398 MLA BJP Kerala Legislative Party Leader (BB Gopakumar) 02. V. MuraleedharanThiruvananthapuram 132 Kazhakootam 46,564 35.39428 03. Rajeev Chandrasekhar 135 Nemom 57,192 40.754,9782016 Kerala Legislative Assembly election 01. O. Rajagopal 2016Thiruvananthapuram135 Nemom 67,813 47.468,671 MLA 2016-2021
Electoral Performance : Local Body Elections Kerala Local Body Elections Summary + Year Gram Panchayats Block Panchayats District Panchayats Municipalities Corporations Total 2015 14 / 941 - (0) 0 / 152 - (0) 0 / 14 - (0) 1 / 87 - (0) 0 / 6 - (0) 15 / 1,200 - (0) 2020 19 / 941 ▲ (+5) 0 / 152 - (0) 0 / 14 - (0) 2 / 87 ▲ (+1) 0 / 6 - (0) 21 / 1,200 ▲ (+6) 2025 26 / 941 ▲ (+7) 0 / 152 - (0) 0 / 14 - (0) 2 / 86 - (0) 1 / 6 ▲ (+1) 29 / 1,200 ▲ (+8)
2025 Election Summary: NDA’s Gram Panchayat victories are spread across eight districts, with the strongest clusters in Thiruvanathapuram (6), Kollam (2), Pathanamthitta (4), Alappuzha (5), Kottayam (3), Thrissur (1), Palakkad (2), and Kasaragod (3). The wins are geographically diverse, covering southern, central, and northern Kerala, reflecting steady grassroots expansion in both rural and semi-urban belts. Palakkad Municipality retained by NDA for a third term (though without an outright majority this time), highlighting localized organizational strength. Thrippunithura Municipality won by NDA from UDF, marking a significant gain. BJP formerly ruled Pandalam Municipality in Pathanamthitta district from 2020 to 2025.
Municipal Corporation Elections
Year Municipal Corporation Seats won Change in seats GovernmentKannur district2015Kannur Municipal CorporationNone2020120253Ernakulam district2015Kochi Municipal Corporation2020320251Kollam district2015Kollam Municipal Corporation2020420256Kozhikode district2015Kozhikode Municipal Corporation202020256Thrissur district2015Thrissur Municipal Corporation202020252Thiruvananthapuram district2015Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation2020202515
In the local body elections of 2025 in Kerala, the Bharatiya Janata Party–led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) secured 50 seats in the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation, emerging as the single largest political front and displacing the Left Democratic Front (LDF) from control after several decades. BJP has created history by winning its first-ever municipal corporation in Kerala. The outcome was widely interpreted by political observers as a notable development for the BJP in Kerala, a state where the party has traditionally had limited electoral success. Analysts commented that the result signalled a shift in the political dynamics of the state’s urban centres. Following the elections, the BJP projected R. Sreelekha, a former Indian Police Service officer, as its mayoral candidate, with party leaders emphasising her administrative experience and governance credentials.
List of mayors