C. Joseph Vijay-led coalition govt secures Assembly trust vote with 144 votes, backed by 25 AIADMK MLAs
The floor test was held at the direction of Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar following the formation of the new government in the wake of the April 23, 2026, Assembly elections.
Total Views |
Actor-turned-politician C. Joseph Vijay sailed through the confidence vote in Tamil Nadu's 234-seat Legislative Assembly on Wednesday, May 13, successfully navigating the first significant test for his newly sworn-in coalition government. The trust vote came just three days after he took the oath as Chief Minister. The TVK-led alliance garnered 144 votes in favour of the motion, well above the majority threshold of 118, while 22 MLAs voted against it and five abstained.
_202605131627468791_H@@IGHT_400_W@@IDTH_700.jpg "CM Vijay newsbharati")
Since no party or alliance independently crossed the halfway mark, TVK stitched together a post-poll coalition with Congress, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, the Communist Party of India, the Communist Party of India (Marxist), and the Indian Union Muslim League to cobble together a working majority.
The DMK, led by Udhayanidhi Stalin, walked out of the Assembly ahead of the vote, dismissing the new administration as a "reel government" and challenging its legitimacy. The official AIADMK leadership also opposed the motion and issued a whip against supporting it, but the rebel faction's decision to cross-vote triggered dramatic scenes on the Assembly floor.
Vijay was sworn in as Chief Minister on May 10, 2026, at a grand ceremony held at Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, alongside nine ministers from TVK. In his first public address after assuming office, he pledged transparent governance, stronger protections for women, and an administration free of any "power centres" outside the elected government. He also announced plans to release a White Paper on the state's finances, amid reports that Tamil Nadu's debt has surpassed Rs 10 lakh crore.
With the confidence vote now behind him, Vijay's government is set to push ahead with key electoral promises, including free electricity schemes, dedicated women's protection units, anti-drug task forces, and greater fiscal accountability. The 52-year-old leader, who made history as Tamil Nadu's first Christian Chief Minister, now faces the formidable task of living up to the towering expectations of the young and aspirational voters whose enthusiasm propelled TVK's meteoric rise to power.
The floor test was held at the direction of Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar following the formation of the new government in the wake of the April 23, 2026, Assembly elections. Speaker J. C. D. Prabhakar presided over the session, which included a debate on the confidence motion that Vijay himself had moved.
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, a party Vijay founded merely two years ago, had emerged as the single-largest party in the elections, clinching 108 seats and a vote share of nearly 34.92%. The result marked a historic disruption of Tamil Nadu's entrenched DMK-AIADMK political order. The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam finished second with 59 seats, while the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam managed 47.
Since no party or alliance independently crossed the halfway mark, TVK stitched together a post-poll coalition with Congress, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, the Communist Party of India, the Communist Party of India (Marxist), and the Indian Union Muslim League to cobble together a working majority.
The government received an unexpected windfall during the trust vote when 25 rebel AIADMK MLAs, led by senior figures S. P. Velumani and C. Ve. Shanmugam defied their party's whip and voted in favour of the Vijay-led administration. Additionally, S. Kamaraj, the sole MLA from Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam, also supported the confidence motion, even though he had been expelled from his party the previous day after publicly declaring his backing for the TVK government.
Although TVK won 108 seats in the elections, its effective strength during the confidence vote was 105. One seat fell vacant after Vijay vacated one of the two constituencies he had won; the Speaker's position rendered another vote unavailable; and MLA Seenivasa Sethupathi was barred from participating following a Madras High Court order related to an election petition.
Vijay was sworn in as Chief Minister on May 10, 2026, at a grand ceremony held at Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, alongside nine ministers from TVK. In his first public address after assuming office, he pledged transparent governance, stronger protections for women, and an administration free of any "power centres" outside the elected government. He also announced plans to release a White Paper on the state's finances, amid reports that Tamil Nadu's debt has surpassed Rs 10 lakh crore.
With the confidence vote now behind him, Vijay's government is set to push ahead with key electoral promises, including free electricity schemes, dedicated women's protection units, anti-drug task forces, and greater fiscal accountability. The 52-year-old leader, who made history as Tamil Nadu's first Christian Chief Minister, now faces the formidable task of living up to the towering expectations of the young and aspirational voters whose enthusiasm propelled TVK's meteoric rise to power.