As Nitish Kumar eyes 10th term, Northeast leaders dominate India’s longest

As Bihar’s Nitish Kumar prepares to take oath for a tenth term, the spotlight has once again turned to India’s longest-serving chief ministers — and the Northeast emerges prominently in this national ranking.

Four of the top five longest tenures in the country belong to leaders from Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram, underscoring the region’s deep tradition of political continuity.

The development comes as Nitish Kumar, already Bihar’s longest-serving chief minister with nine previous stints (including a brief seven-day term in 2000), readies himself for yet another term. His long political career adds fresh context to the legacies of other veteran chief ministers across India, many of whom shaped their states for decades.

Here are India’s ten longest-serving chief ministers, with N