Nguyễn Hữu Thọ began his political career in 1949, when he led protests against French colonial rule of Indochina and the patrols of US naval warships off the coast of southern Vietnam.

In 1961, he escaped from prison and became first interim president and then chairman of the North Vietnamese backed National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam (Viet Cong), which was co-founded by him on December 20, 1960.

After Tôn Đức Thắng's death on 30 March 1980, he became acting President of Vietnam, a post he held until he was replaced by Trường Chinh on 4 July 1981.

A French-educated lawyer in Cochinchina, Thọ was also a member of the French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO) and a participant in the Vietnamese fight for independence.

The committee was crushed and banned by the South Vietnamese government in November the same year, and Thọ and other members of the organization were jailed after a police raid.

His title was given as: President of the Presidium of the Consultative Council of the South Viet Nam [sic] National Front for Liberation on the 5th founding anniversary of the N.F.L.