BJP-led Mahayuti crosses majority mark in BMC polls, Thackeray cousins trail

The BJP-led Mahayuti alliance surged past the majority mark in the high-stakes Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections on Friday, according to counting trends, dealing a significant setback to the Thackeray cousins’ bid to retain influence over India’s richest civic body.

As votes were counted for elections to 29 municipal corporations across Maharashtra, the Bharatiya Janata Party emerged as the single largest force in Mumbai’s civic polls, with the ruling alliance gaining a decisive edge in the BMC.

BJP-Shinde alliance gains commanding lead

In Mumbai, the Mahayuti alliance was leading in around 117–119 wards, well past the halfway mark in the 227-member civic body. Of these, the BJP was ahead in 86–88 wards, while Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena faction was leading in about 31 wards, according to early trends.

In contrast, the combined strength of the Thackeray cousins fell short of expectations. Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) was leading in around 58–64 wards, while Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) was ahead in six to nine wards, taking their combined tally to roughly 68–70 seats.

The Congress continued to struggle in Mumbai, managing leads in only about 10 wards, while both factions of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) — led by Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar — were ahead in just one ward each.

Athawale confident of Mahayuti mayor in Mumbai

Union Minister Ramdas Athawale expressed confidence that the next Mayor of Mumbai would come from the Mahayuti alliance, citing the alliance’s strong performance across the city.

“Most of the seats in the BMC elections are going to the Mahayuti alliance. The Mayor of Mumbai will be from the Mahayuti alliance, and will be a Marathi speaker,” Athawale told reporters.

Statewide trends favour ruling alliance

Beyond Mumbai, trends across Maharashtra’s urban local bodies also tilted strongly in favour of the BJP-led alliance. Across the 29 municipal corporations, the BJP was leading in about 909 wards, while the Shinde-led Shiv Sena was ahead in around 237 wards, reinforcing the ruling alliance’s dominance in urban centres.

Pune emerged as another closely watched battleground, where the rival NCP factions led by Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar joined hands for the civic polls. The outcome there is being seen as a test of the alliance’s grassroots electoral viability.

High-stakes polls after long delay

Polling for a total of 2,869 seats across 893 wards in the 29 civic bodies was held on Thursday. Around 34.8 million voters were eligible to cast their ballots, deciding the fate of 15,931 candidates, including nearly 1,700 in Mumbai alone.

The BMC elections were conducted after a prolonged delay of nearly nine years, adding to their political significance. With an annual budget exceeding Rs744 billion, control of the Mumbai civic body has long been a prized political asset in Maharashtra.

Final results are expected to significantly reshape the state’s urban political landscape and consolidate the BJP-led alliance’s influence ahead of future electoral battles.

- with inputs from IANS and ANI