O. Panneerselvam, a three-time former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, has made a significant political shift ahead of the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections. He has left the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and joined the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), marking a dramatic realignment after decades with the AIADMK.
Panneerselvam, also known as OPS, is a veteran Indian politician who served as Chief Minister during three separate terms: 2001-2002, 2014-2015, and briefly in 2016 following the death of J. Jayalalithaa. He is now contesting from the Bodinayakkanur constituency on a DMK ticket.
Panneerselvam joined the AIADMK in 1973 and rose through the party ranks as a close confidant of J. Jayalalithaa. He became one of the most recognisable faces of the AIADMK, serving as Leader of the House in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly from 2018 to 2021 and presenting the state budget 11 times as Finance Minister.
However, in a significant turnaround, Panneerselvam resigned as an MLA on February 27, 2026, and joined the DMK after nearly five decades with the AIADMK. Now contesting under the DMK and campaigning against the very party he represented for most of his career, making his switch one of the most notable developments in the run-up to the 2026 elections.
