Maharashtra civic polls: Contest between many avatars of Mahayuti and MVA

Overview The second phase of civic polls across Maharashtra is scheduled for January 15, 2026 . Six major political parties – BJP , two factions of Shiv Sena , two factions of NCP , and Congress – are contesting in various alliances across 29 municipal corporations . The results will be announced on January 16, 2026 . Key Cities and Stakes Crucial cities where civic polls will be held include Mumbai , Thane , Kalyan-Dombivli , Nashik , Pune , Pimpri-Chinchwad , Kolhapur , and Nagpur . These corporations have been run by administrators for the past three years, making these elections highly significant. All six parties have re-jigged their coalition partners based on local influence. Previous Election Results In the first round of civic polls held in December 2025 , the Mahayuti and MVA parties fought separately, including several ‘friendly fights,’ but maintained their respective coalition partners post-polls. Of the 288 municipal councils , Mahayuti won 207 . Specifically, BJP secured victories in 117 civic bodies, followed by Shiv Sena in 53 and NCP in 37 . The MVA managed to win only 52 municipalities , with Congress winning 28 , Shiv Sena (UBT) winning 9 , and NCP-SP winning 7 . Unopposed Winners and Controversy Ahead of voting, 68 candidates of the Mahayuti have already won ‘unopposed,’ including 44 BJP candidates , 22 from Sena , and 2 from NCP . These ‘winners’ are spread across Kalyan-Dombivli , Thane , Pune , Pimpri Chinchwad , Panvel , Bhiwandi , Dhule , Jalgaon , and Ahilyanagar . Amid Opposition concerns, the State Election Commission (SEC) has stated that it will not declare winners until an inquiry report is submitted. Key Battles in Major Cities Mumbai For Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) , BJP has retained Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena as its partner to challenge Shiv Sena (UBT) . Uddhav Thackeray has allied with Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-SP) . Congress has allied with Prakash Ambedkar’s Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) , while Ajit Pawar’s NCP is contesting independently. BJP is contesting on 137 seats , Shiv Sena on 90 seats in the 227-member BMC . Sena (UBT) will contest on 165 seats , MNS on 52 , and NCP-SP on 10 . Congress will contest on 143 seats , VBA on 62 , and smaller allies on 6 seats . NCP and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) are contesting independently on 94 and 75 seats respectively. Suburbs Outside Mumbai Thane is a Shiv Sena stronghold. For the 131-seat council , Sena is contesting on 87 seats , BJP on 40 , and smaller allies have been allotted 4 seats . Sena (UBT) will contest on 53 seats , MNS on 34 , and NCP-SP on 36 . Congress and NCP are contesting solo on 96 and 75 seats respectively. In Kalyan-Dombivli , Shinde’s Sena is contesting on 65 seats , BJP on 57 . Sena (UBT) is contesting on 68 and MNS on 54 . NCP-SP is contesting on 45 seats with the Congress-VBA bloc , with Congress grabbing 55 seats and VBA on 12 seats . Pune & Pimpri-Chinchwad The Pawar clan has united to regain their influence in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad . In 2017 , BJP won 97 seats in the 165-member corporation . In Pune , NCP has put up 130 candidates while NCP-SP had fielded 43 . In Pimpri-Chinchwad , Ajit Pawar’s faction has grabbed 110 seats while Sharad Pawar’s faction is contesting on 18 seats for the 128-member civic body .

Maharashtra civic polls: Contest between many avatars of Mahayuti and MVA

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Maharashtra civic polls: Contest between many avatars of Mahayuti and MVA

Maharashtra civic polls: Contest between many avatars of Mahayuti and MVA

Overview

Key Points

Full Article

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