Nitish Kumar Set To Enter Rajya Sabha: Who Will Succeed Him As Bihar's Next CM? A Look At Frontrunners

Last Updated:March 05, 2026, 10:57 IST

As Nitish Kumar is expected to move to Rajya Sabha, speculations over the next Bihar Chief Minister Being from the BJP are doing rounds.

Marking a new phase in the politics of Bihar, Nitish Kumar is expected to file his nomination for the Rajya Sabha polls on Thursday. The development came nearly four months after he was sworn in for a record 10th term as Bihar Chief Minister following the NDA’s landslide victory in the Assembly polls, held last year.

As Kumar is set to step down from the position of Bihar Chief Minister, speculations over the next chief ministerial candidate of Bihar being from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are doing the rounds in the political circles of the state.

According to reports, the next Bihar Chief Minister is likely to be from the BJP as it emerged as the single largest party in the Assembly with 89 seats in the 243 seats Assembly, with JDU registering its win over 85 seats.

Frontrunners For Bihar’s Next CM

According to reports, the BJP could lead the next government in Bihar, with the JD(U) expected to receive two Deputy Chief Minister positions as part of a power-sharing arrangement.

While Nitish Kumar is set move to Rajya Sabha, his son Nishant Kumar, who has long stayed away from the limelight, is expected to likely make his political debut and might be the next probable candidate for Bihar’s Deputy Chief Minister’s post.

Frontrunners for the next Bihar Chief Minister candidates include deputy CMs Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha. In addition to this, Bihar minister Dilip Jaiswal and Digha BJP MLA Sanjiv Chaurasia are also speculated to be in the race for the chief ministerial face.

Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai is also reportedly eyeing the Chief Minister’s post, according to the report.

Nitish Kumar’s Son Enters Politics

Amid speculation over a likely leadership change in Bihar, Nitish Kumar’s son Nishant is also set to enter politics, though his exact role is yet to be decided.

“On the eve of Holi, I have some good news to share with the people of Bihar. It has been some time since there have been demands, from within the JD(U) as well as from among the state’s youth, that Nishant, the son of chief minister Nitish Kumar, join politics. Decks have been cleared for that and a formal announcement will be made in a day or two," Shrawon Kumar told news agency PTI.

Meanwhile, close aides of Nitish Kumar are unclear about whether he would project his son Nishant as his natural heir, especially since he has consistently criticised dynastic politics.

News politics Nitish Kumar Set To Enter Rajya Sabha: Who Will Succeed Him As Bihar's Next CM? A Look At Frontrunners

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