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NEW DELHI: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Maharashtra civic elections 2026 person marked a decisive displacement successful the municipality governmental landscape. Held aft a hold of astir 4 years owed to ineligible challenges and prolonged head rule, the elections crossed 27 municipal corporations and 2,869 seats were wide seen arsenic a trial of governance credibility and of beingness for some.The verdict was emphatic. The BJP-led Mahayuti confederation emerged arsenic the ascendant unit successful municipality Maharashtra, projected to triumph much than 1,800 seats statewide. In Mumbai, the Mahayuti crossed the bulk threshold successful the 227-member BMC, with the BJP seizing implicit 90 wards unsocial successful its favour.
Mumbai And Pune Verdict Shake Thackeray And Pawar Dynasties As Legacy Politics Faces Reality Check
With this, determination ended the Shiv Sena's uninterrupted power of the civic assemblage since 1997 and marked the BJP’s archetypal existent seizure of India’s richest municipal corporation.

Here are the apical 10 winners and losers of Maharashtra civic canvass elections:
WINNERS
1. Devendra Fadnavis and BJPThe biggest and the evident victor of the civic polls verdict is Devendra Fadnavis and the Bharatiya Janata Party.The BJP has won implicit 90 wards of the BMC connected its own, compared to 82 successful 2017. In cardinal wards specified arsenic Mulund West (Ward 103), the BJP defeated the MNS by a borderline exceeding 12,000 votes.

Statewide results reinforced this dominance. The BJP led successful Pune Municipal Corporation with implicit 50 of 162 seats, secured a bulk successful Navi Mumbai (40 of 67), and crossed 80 seats successful Nagpur’s 151-member civic body.
Axis My India had estimated the BJP enactment among first-time voters (18–25 property group) astatine 47 per cent, portion 44 per cent of women voters backed the party, influenced by payment schemes specified arsenic Majhi Ladki Bahin and promises of tighter audits of civic spending. With the BMC’s yearly fund exceeding Rs 60,000 crore, power implicit Mumbai’s civic machinery besides enhances the BJP’s semipermanent organization leverage up of the 2029 assembly elections.

2. Eknath Shinde and Shiv Sena For the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, the civic results offered governmental validation.Since the 2022 split, the Shinde faction’s cardinal situation has been legitimacy. The civic verdict, peculiarly successful Mumbai and Thane, strengthened its claim. The enactment has won/leading connected 352 wards and has emerged arsenic the 2nd largest enactment successful Maharashtra civic polls.In Mira-Bhayandar and Ulhasnagar, the Shinde faction recorded near-sweeps, reflecting elector penchant for continuity successful infrastructure transportation implicit symbolic politics.3. Mahayuti confederation The BJP–Shiv Sena–NCP Mahayuti confederation erstwhile again sealed the triumph successful Maharashtra.Despite contesting separately successful immoderate cities, the confederation demonstrated effectual ballot transferability successful Mumbai, Nashik, and Nagpur. The confederation won oregon is leadinf successful implicit 1,700 wards crossed Maharashtra.With a large victory, Mahayuti showed however to converted state-level powerfulness into grassroots and civic dominance.4. AIMIMThe All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) made humble but consequential gains successful Maharashtra civic elections.The enactment registered victory/is starring connected 94 wards, chiefly successful Muslim-majority pockets specified arsenic Bhendi Bazaar and parts of Kurla and Mumbra. In Aurangabad Municipal Corporation, it crossed 15 seats.While these numbers stay small, AIMIM’s beingness seems to person fragmented the absorption vote, peculiarly hurting Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT). 5. K Annamalai and 'rasmalai'When the results of the Maharashtra civic elections were being tallied, 1 of the astir unexpected stories to look was not astir seats won oregon wards lost.
It was astir communicative currency — however a Tamil Nadu BJP person emerged arsenic a victor without contesting.And it each started with the 'rasmalai' contention which begun erstwhile portion campaigning successful Mumbai for the BMC elections, Annamalai had said the metropolis didn't beryllium to Maharashtra unsocial arsenic it was an planetary city.The remarks triggered a crisp speech astatine a associated Shiv Sena (UBT)–MNS rally successful Mumbai. MNS main Raj Thackeray took a swipe astatine Annamalai, mocking him arsenic 'rasmalai' and questioning his authorization to remark connected Mumbai.
He besides raised the slogan “hatao lungi, bajao pungi”, a operation agelong utilized derogatorily against South Indians successful the city.However, Mahayuti won and BJP MPs and supporters were soon having a tract connected societal media, posting photos of 'rasmalai' and mocking Raj Thackeray.
Losers
1. Uddhav Thackeray's Sena The biggest electoral setback was suffered by Uddhav Thackeray. From implicit 130 BMC seats successful 2017, Sena (UBT) fell to 72 seats. Even accepted strongholds specified arsenic Gorai and parts of Mahim witnessed defeats. The nonaccomplishment of power of the BMC is simply a large stroke to Uddhav the Sena has ever maintained its power implicit the civic body.His long-anticipated reunion with estranged relative Raj Thackeray besides failed to marque immoderate interaction connected the ground.2. Congress The Indian National Congress emerged arsenic 1 of the biggest losers of the BMC and Maharashtra civic elections due to the fact that the results exposed its near-total erosion successful municipality politics.In the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, Congress was reduced to astir 21 seats, a crisp autumn from its already diminished beingness successful 2017, erstwhile it had crossed 30.
Across Maharashtra’s 27 municipal corporations, the enactment managed astir 306 wards retired of 2,869. In Pune, erstwhile a Congress-influenced city, the enactment was restricted to less than 5 seats retired of 162, portion successful Mumbai it failed to look arsenic a superior contender successful astir wards.In Pune, it was reduced to less than 5 seats. The enactment which decided to spell solo aft that Thackeray cousins jouned hands, failed to marque immoderate interaction successful BMC polls wherever Uddhav's Sena won 72 seats. It seems that deficiency of a city-specific agenda, factional infighting and minimal nationalist enactment beingness during the run compounded the decline.3. Raj Thackeray and MNSFor Raj Thackeray, the civic polls reinforced a semipermanent downward trajectory.The person joined hands with his relative Uddhav to support the BJP astatine bay. But the results amusement however helium failed miserably. During the predetermination campaign, helium tried to entreaty astir the thought of the 'Marathi Manoos' portion invoking Balasaheb Thackeray.
This authorities of sentiment evidently has heavy roots successful Maharashtra’s history. He relied connected fiery speeches, symbolic gestures and taste flashpoints to bid attention, often targeting migrants, linguistic outsiders, oregon perceived taste dilution successful Mumbai. Unlike wide payment oregon governance-driven politics, his entreaty was rooted successful 'Marathi asmita'.This, however, failed to resonate with the voters. The MNS failed to unafraid large wins, portion getting lone 11 of 227 wards successful Mumbai. At the authorities level, the enactment managed to get lone 18 of 2869 wards.4: Sharad Pawar Sharad Pawar emerged arsenic 1 of the biggest losers of the BMC and Maharashtra civic elections arsenic the results exposed the dependable erosion of his once-formidable grip implicit municipality and organisational politics.For decades, Pawar was seen arsenic the maestro strategist of Maharashtra, susceptible of shaping outcomes adjacent erstwhile not successful nonstop power. The civic verdict punctured that perception.
The NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) failed to marque immoderate meaningful interaction successful the BMC, getting conscionable 1 triumph successful Mumbai wards and remaining marginal successful Pune, a metropolis agelong considered cardinal to Pawar’s governmental influence.His strategy to articulation hands with nephew Ajit Pawar for the Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad municipal elections besides failed arsenic the BJP secured triumph successful these bodies.Statewide, the faction’s ward tally was 28 of 2869 wards, acold beneath expectations for a enactment led by a seasoned of his stature.Crucially, Pawar’s accepted relation arsenic an alliance-builder besides mislaid relevance. Fragmentation wrong the absorption and the emergence of a ascendant Mahayuti confederation reduced his quality to enactment arsenic a powerfulness broker. This time, though reports suggested helium wanted the Maha Vikas Agadi to combat arsenic a unit, helium failed to support the parties together, particularly aft the Thackeray cousins joined hands, pushing Congress to spell solo.10. Ajit PawarDespite being portion of Mahayuti, Ajit Pawar has emerged arsenic 1 of the losers this election. During the civic canvass campaigns, Ajit Pawar repeatedly deed retired astatine his ain Mahayuti allies, Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis, exposing disposable faultlines wrong the ruling alliance.As predetermination day approached, helium yet decided to unite with his uncle Sharad Pawar to contention Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad elections arsenic a agreed front.His attacks were besides unusually crisp for an confederation partner, with Pawar questioning wherefore section bodies nether BJP–Shinde power inactive struggled with h2o supply, roads and municipality planning. In respective rallies, helium projected his faction arsenic a corrective unit wrong the authorities alternatively than a stakeholder successful its record. . The civic results nevertheless suggest the maneuver backfired. Ajit Pawar’s faction underperformed successful Pune and Nashik, reinforcing the cognition that nationalist sparring with allies during elections diluted his credibility and bargaining powerfulness wrong the Mahayuti alternatively than strengthening it. Eventually, the Pawar mislaid their strongholds, Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, to BJP with immense margin.
