BENGALURU, July 28 -- The Congress has weathered the transition from Siddaramaiah to DK Shivakumar in government. The Congress' more difficult transition may come in the next Assembly election, when Karnataka voters will see Siddaramaiah absent from the ballot for the first time in decades.

By announcing that he will not contest the 2028 Assembly election, Siddaramaiah has done more than signal the end of his electoral career. He has set the stage for the Congress's first real test of whether the political coalition he assembled can endure without its principal architect seeking a mandate himself.

His son and Karnataka minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah said there was no question of asking his father to reconsider the decision.

"As his so...