On February 2, 2024, when Tamil Nadu’s biggest and highest paid actor announced his entry into politics, few would have imagined that just over two years later, he would be sworn in as Chief Minister of the state. But on May 10, 2026, C Joseph Vijay took oath as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu at Chennai’s Nehru Stadium, before thousands of cheering supporters, completing one of the most dramatic political rises in the state’s history.
For months, political parties, analysts, and observers believed Vijay would at best replicate the electoral impact of actor-politician Vijayakanth in 2009. But those calculations proved wrong as 1.72 crore voters backed Vijay’s party, propelling it to 108 seats in the Tamil Nadu Assembly and placing it within striking distance of forming the government.
With Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), a party that is barely two-and-a-half years old, Vijay has effectively disrupted one of the most entrenched political orders in India. His victory ends the decades-long dominance of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), the two Dravidian giants that have alternated in power in the state since 1967.
Vijay was sworn in by TN Governor RV Arlekar along with nine ministers – N Anand (Bussy Anand), Aadhav Arjuna, KG Arunraj, KA Sengottaiyan, P Venkataramanan, R Nirmalkumar, Rajmohan, TK Prabhu, and S Keerthana.
In the audience were Vijay’s father S A Chandrasekhar, mother Shoba Chandasekhar, leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi, CPI(M) State Secretary P Shanmugham, Congress leaders Praveen Chakravarthy and Manickam Tagore, BJP leader Nainar Nagendran, actor Trisha and film producer Archana Kalpathi.
In many places in the state, Vijay fans installed big screens to telecast the swearing in live.
The road to the swearing-in, however, was far from straightforward.
Though TVK emerged as the single largest party in the Assembly elections with 108 seats and a formidable 34.92% vote share, the party fell short of the majority mark in the 234-member Assembly, triggering uncertainty over government formation. The suspense deepened after Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar declined to immediately administer the oath and asked Vijay to first demonstrate majority support.
What followed was a rapid political realignment that reshaped Tamil Nadu’s opposition landscape almost overnight.
In a stunning break from one of Tamil Nadu’s longest-running alliances, the Congress walked out of the DMK-led alliance to back TVK, triggering rebellion and resignations within sections of its own state unit. Congress leaders defended the move by arguing that supporting Vijay was necessary to uphold the “secular mandate” of the election and keep the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its parent Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) out of Tamil Nadu politics.
In another dramatic twist, reports suggested that arch-rivals DMK and AIADMK were exploring ways to keep TVK out of power through an unprecedented post-poll understanding, despite Vijay leading the single largest party. The move, however, ultimately did not materialise.
After the Congress shifted sides, all eyes turned to the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) and the Left parties. Eventually, the Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India (Marxist), and VCK extended support to Vijay, arguing that the people’s mandate should not be obstructed.
The support was politically significant beyond just the numbers. For the first time, several parties that had long positioned themselves within the Dravidian-secular alliance structure rallied behind a personality-driven outsider, signalling how Vijay and TVK were increasingly being viewed by sections of Tamil Nadu’s secular opposition as the new political force capable of countering both the BJP and the collapsing old alliance order.
Their backing ultimately pushed TVK past the majority mark and enabled Vijay to form the government without depending on either the DMK, AIADMK, or the BJP.
The dramatic post-poll developments only underscored the scale of Vijay’s political breakthrough.
Defying most pre-poll projections, TVK transformed what many had initially dismissed as a celebrity-driven experiment into one of the biggest political upsets in Tamil Nadu’s recent history. The party made deep inroads into both DMK and AIADMK strongholds, especially across Greater Chennai and western Tamil Nadu.
In one of the election’s most symbolic defeats, outgoing Chief Minister MK Stalin lost the Kolathur constituency, which he had represented since 2011.
Vijay is now only the third film star after MG Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa to become Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. Unlike Rajinikanth, who withdrew from electoral politics before contesting, or Kamal Haasan, whose party failed to emerge as a major electoral force, Vijay succeeded in converting cinematic popularity into a statewide political mandate.
What made TVK’s rise particularly striking was the nature of its campaign. Vijay largely avoided detailed policy articulation and traditional media engagement, instead relying on carefully choreographed appearances, emotionally charged speeches, and massive roadshows centred almost entirely around his personal appeal. Critics repeatedly questioned whether his support extended beyond fan clubs and social media hype. The election results suggested otherwise.
His rise, however, was not without setbacks. TVK’s campaign came under scrutiny following the Karur stampede tragedy, while Vijay’s reported swansong film Jana Nayagan faced repeated delays before portions of it leaked online. Questions also persisted over whether celebrity charisma alone could sustain a political movement in a state long shaped by ideology-driven and cadre-based politics.
But by the evening of May 9, those doubts had given way to a moment few would have predicted even a few years ago – a first-time politician leading a two-year-old party to power, and fundamentally reshaping Tamil Nadu’s political landscape.