Kharge became the first non-Gandhi Congress president in 24 years, defeating Shashi Tharoor. He will take charge of the new role on October 26, said party MP Randeep Surjewala.

Congress’s central election authority chairman Madhusudan Mistry announced Kharge’s name after the counting of votes and said that of the total 9,385 votes polled in the Congress president poll, Kharge got 7,897 votes and Tharoor received 1,072 votes. The rest of the 416 votes were declared invalid.
In his first address after being elected the Congress president, Kharge thanked outgoing party chief Sonia Gandhi on behalf of all party workers. He said that she “sacrificed many years of her life for the grand old party”.

“I want to thank Sonia Gandhi on behalf of all party workers. Under her leadership, we formed our government at the Centre twice,” he said.
Kharge further congratulated his opponent in the election, Tharoor. “I want to congratulate my partner Shashi Tharoor as well. I met him and discussed how to take the party forward,” he said.

“We all have to work like workers of the party, nobody is big or small in the party. We have to unitedly fight against the fascist forces that are attacking the democratic institutions under the garb of communalism,” he added.

Mr. Kharge (80) is the first non-Gandhi leader after 24 years to occupy the party’s top post.Making the formal announcement, Madhusudan Mistry, Chairman of the Central Election Authority, said: “As per the Article 18D of the constitution of the Indian National Congress, I, Madhusudan Mistry, hereby declare Shri Mallikarjun Kharge as the President of the Indian National Congress.”
“It is a great honour & a huge responsibility to be President of @INCIndia & I wish @Kharge ji all success in that task. It was a privilege to have received the support of over a thousand colleagues, & to carry the hopes & aspirations of so many well-wishers of Congress across India,” tweeted Mr. Tharoor.
“Shri. Kharge’s victory in the Congress presidential election is a triumph for the forces who place ideological commitment over personal glory,” Congress communication chief Jairam Ramesh tweeted.

“Kharge has always avoided flamboyance and has been the quintessential organisation man working in a self-effacing manner to advance the collective interests of the Congress party. He has the good wishes of all Congressmen and Congresswomen,” Mr.Ramesh added.
More than 9,500 delegates cast their votes in the presidential election which took place at the culmination of the party’s organisational polls.

As per Congress sources, the elected president will take charge after Deepavali in the presence of senior leaders in a programme at the Congress headquarters,