Overview
- Campaigning ended on January 13 and the silence period is in force, with voting from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm on January 15 and counting on January 16.
- About 3.48 crore voters will choose among 15,931 candidates for 2,869 seats across 29 corporations, including roughly 1,700 candidates in Mumbai and 1,166 in Pune.
- In Mumbai’s BMC race, reported tallies show BJP 137 seats, Shiv Sena (Shinde) 90, NCP 94, Shiv Sena (UBT) 163, MNS 52, Congress 143 and VBA 46, reflecting fluid alliances and a reunited Thackeray front.
- Mumbai Police plan to deploy more than 25,000 personnel for polling and counting; postal voting for election-duty staff recorded 11,627 ballots and 4,521 absentees have been warned of police action.
- The Shinde-led Sena’s High Court petition challenging UBT leader Kishori Pednekar’s nomination will be heard after the polls, as model-code enforcement continues with complaints over illegal hoardings in Pune and SVEEP drives including post-vote dining discounts.