| Sl. No. | Name | Party | Period |
| 1 | Chengalaraya Reddy | Congress | October 25, 1947 - March 30, 1952 |
| 2 | Kengal Hanumanthaiah | Congress | March 30, 1952 - August 19, 1956 |
| 3 | Kadidal Manjappa | Congress | August 19, 1956 - October 31, 1956 |
| 4 | S. Nijalingappa | Congress | November 1, 1956 - April 10, 1957 |
| 5 | S. Nijalingappa | Congress | April 10, 1957 - May 16, 1958 |
| 6 | B.D. Jatti | Congress | May 16, 1958 - March 9, 1962 |
| 7 | S.R. Kanthi | Congress | March 14, 1962 - June 20, 1962 |
| 8 | S. Nijalingappa | Congress | June 21, 1962 - March 3, 1967 |
| 9 | S. Nijalingappa | Congress | March 3, 1967 - May 29, 1968 |
| 10 | Veerendra Patil | Congress | May 29, 1968 - March 18, 1971 |
| | Presidents Rule | | March 19, 1971 - March 20, 1972 |
| 11 | D. Devaraj Urs | Congress | March 20, 1972 - December 31, 1977 |
| | Presidents Rule | | December 31, 1977 - February 28, 1978 |
| 12 | D. Devaraj Urs | Congress | February 28, 1978 - January 7, 1980 |
| 13 | R. Gundu Rao | Congress | January 12, 1980 - January 6, 1983 |
| 14 | Ramakrishna Hegde | Janata Party | January 10, 1983 - December 29, 1984 |
| 15 | Ramakrishna Hegde | Janata Party | March 8, 1985 - February 13, 1986 |
| 16 | Ramakrishna Hegde | Janata Party | February 16, 1986 - August 10, 1988 |
| 17 | S.R. Bommai | Janata Party | August 13, 1988 - April 21, 1989 |
| | Presidents Rule | | April 21, 1989 - November 30, 1989 |
| 18 | Veerendra Patil | Congress | November 30, 1989 - October 10, 1990 |
| | Presidents Rule | | October 10, 1990 - October 17, 1990 |
| 19 | S. Bangarappa | Congress | October 17, 1990 - November 19, 1992 |
| 20 | M. Veerappa Moily | Congress | November 19, 1992 - December 11, 1994 |
| 21 | H.D. Deve Gowda | Janata Dal | December 11, 1994 - May 31, 1996 |
| 22 | J.H. Patel | Janata Dal | May 31, 1996 - October 07, 1999 |
| 23 | S.M. Krishna | Congress | October 11, 1999 - May 28, 2004 |
| 24 | Dharam Singh | Congress [Congress-JD(s) coalition] | May 28, 2004 - Jan 27, 2006 |
| 24 | H D Kumaraswamy | JD(s) [BJP-JD(s) coalition] | Feb 3, 2006 - October 8, 2007 |
| 25 | Presidents Rule | | October 9, 2007 - November 8, 2007 |
| 26 | B | BJP [BJP-JD(s) coalition] | November 12, 2007 - November 19, 2007 |
| 27 | Presidents Rule | | November 20, 2007 - May 29, 2008 |
| 28 | B | BJP | May 30, 2008 - |
Chief Ministers of Karnataka
