What is TVK? Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam explained

Key facts, April 2026 election

Seats won

108 of 234

Share of the vote

34.9%

Votes

1,72,26,209

Seats contested

233 of 234

Source: Election Commission of India; the share is TVK's votes over all 4,93,24,121 votes counted (EVM, postal and NOTA).

Where TVK came from

The film actor C. Joseph Vijay launched the party on 2 February 2024, with the aim of contesting the 2026 Assembly election. April 2026 was the first Assembly election it fought.

It fought without an alliance. ECI's candidate list shows a TVK candidate in 233 of the 234 seats; the one exception is Edappadi, where there is none.

What happened in 2026

TVK finished first with 108 seats (34.9%), ahead of the DMK (59) and the AIADMK (47). No party reached 118, the majority mark, so TVK formed the government with the support of other parties: see who backs the TVK government. Vijay took the oath as Chief Minister on 10 May 2026, the first Chief Minister from outside the DMK and the AIADMK since 1967.

Vijay won two seats, Perambur and Tiruchirappalli East, and gave up Tiruchirappalli East on 10 May 2026. TVK's 108 winners therefore sat as 107 MLAs from that day.

Not to be confused with TVAK

ECI's pages also show a different party, Tamizhaga Vaazhvurimai Katchi, as “TVK”. It polled 74,809 votes and won no seat. This site counts it separately, as TVAK.

More: all TVK MLAs · votes and seats by party · the cabinet.