He was elected to the
Lok Sabha for the first time in 1989 and thereafter he won consecutively in the 1991, 1996 and 1999 General Elections to the Lok Sabha from
Adoor constituency for four straight terms. However he was defeated in the 1998 and 2004 general elections. Kodikunnil served as the member of the
Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee and member of
All India Congress Committee. In the
general election to the Lok Sabha in 2009, he contested from
Mavelikara Lok Sabha constituency and defeated R. S. Anil of the
Communist Party of India with a margin of 48,048 votes. On 19 September 2018, he was appointed as working-president of the
Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC). He continued to win in
2009 Indian general election,
2014 Indian general election,
2019 Indian general election and
2024 Indian general election from
Mavelikara Lok Sabha constituency and is currently the longest serving Lok Sabha MP as he has remained MP for 29 years, winning the elections 8 times. The position of pro tem speaker, assigned for administering the oath taking ceremony of the elected MPs, is traditionally given to the senior most member. However, this tradition was broken in 2024 after
Bhartruhari Mahtab was elected as pro tem speaker. In response, the INDIA alliance nominated K. Suresh as candidate for post of speaker, triggering an election for the post for the first time since independence. ==Controversies==