The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) on Wednesday officially announced its candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections scheduled for June 19, 2025. The ruling party in Tamil Nadu named candidates for three out of six Rajya Sabha seats from the state, while also allotting one Upper House seat to its ally, the Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM), led by actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan. The DMK re-nominated its sitting Rajya Sabha MP and senior advocate P Wilson for another term. Alongside him, the party selected SR Sivalingam, a prominent leader from Salem, and Ruqayya Malik, popularly known as Kavignar Salma—a poet, writer, and active party functionary—as its other two candidates for the Upper House.
In a party release, Chief Minister M K Stalin, who is also the DMK president, highlighted that the allocation of one Rajya Sabha seat to MNM is in line with an electoral pact forged ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The pact reflects the DMK’s commitment to its allies within the alliance. Kamal Haasan is poised to make his debut in the Rajya Sabha with the ruling DMK extending its support. The MNM has already passed a resolution endorsing his nomination to the Upper House. MNM leader Murali Appas stated, "We have passed a resolution to elect Kamal Haasan as a Rajya Sabha member from the Makkal Needhi Maiam party." Since launching his political journey in 2018, Haasan has championed the cause of alternative and transparent governance as the core of his political vision. His entry into the Rajya Sabha marks a significant milestone in his political career.
The DMK-led alliance, holding a strong majority of 159 MLAs in the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly, is well-positioned to secure four of the six seats in the Rajya Sabha elections. Meanwhile, the main opposition, the AIADMK, led by Edappadi K Palaniswami, is expected to win two seats, supported by its alliance partners—the BJP and the O Panneerselvam faction—with an effective support base of 62 MLAs. The election for the six vacant Rajya Sabha seats from Tamil Nadu is scheduled for June 19, 2025, with vote counting to take place the same day.