Politics in Orissa takes place within a framework of a federal parliamentary representative democratic republic, where the Union Government of India exercises sovereign rights with certain powers reserved to the states of India including Orissa. The state has a multi-party system where the two main parties are the centrist and secularist Indian National Congress (INC) and the regional socialist party Biju Janata Dal (BJD). The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has increased in recent years. The Governor of Orissa is appointed by the Union Government and can, in some circumstances, dismiss the state government.
Since independence, the Chief Ministers of Orissa have been:
| # | Name | Party | Took Office | Left Office |
| 1 | Harekrushna Mahatab | Indian National Congress | 15 August 1947 | 12 May 1950 |
| 2 | Nabakrushna Choudhury | Indian National Congress | 12 May 1950 | 15 October 1956 |
| 3 | Harekrushna Mahatab [2] | Indian National Congress | 15 October 1956 | 25 February 1961 |
| 4 | Bijayananda Pattanaik | Indian National Congress | 28 June 1961 | 2 October 1963 |
| 5 | Biren Mitra | Indian National Congress | 2 October 1963 | 21 February 1965 |
| 6 | Sadashiva Tripathy | Indian National Congress | 2 October 1965 | 8 March 1967 |
| 7 | Rajendra Narayan Singhdeo | Swatantra Party | 8 March 1967 | 11 January 1971 |
| 8 | Biswanath Das | 3 April 1971 | 14 June 1972 | |
| 9 | Nandini Satpathy | 14 June 1972 | 3 March 1973 | |
| 10 | Nandini Satpathy [2] | 6 March 1973 | 16 December 1976 | |
| 11 | Binayak Acharya | 29 December 1976 | 25 June 1977 | |
| 12 | Nilamani Routray | Janata Party | 25 June 1977 | 17 February 1980 |
| 13 | Janaki Ballabh Pattanaik | Indian National Congress | 9 June 1980 | 7 December 1989 |
| 14 | Hemananda Biswal | Indian National Congress | 7 December 1989 | 5 March 1990 |
| 15 | Biju Pattanaik | Janata Dal | 5 March 1990 | 15 March 1995 |
| 16 | Janaki Ballabh Pattanaik [2] | Indian National Congress | 15 March 1995 | 17 February 1999 |
| 17 | Giridhar Gamang | Indian National Congress | 17 February 1999 | 6 December 1999 |
| 18 | Hemananda Biswal | Indian National Congress | 6 December 1999 | 5 March 2000 |
| 19 | Navin Pattanaik | Biju Janata Dal | 5 March 2000 |
The most recent election was held in 2009. Biju Janata Dal came back to power with a thumping majority by winning 103 seats out of 147 seats. Their former coalition allies, the BJP, won only six seats. The opposition INC also lost 11 seats compared to 2004 elections and was the second largest party.
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