Mumbai: The BJP-led alliance has secured a clear lead in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections 2026, crossing the halfway mark in the city’s crucial civic body, while the Thackeray cousins’ factions are trailing behind. Votes are being counted for 29 municipal bodies across Maharashtra, with BMC results drawing significant attention due to the corporation’s cash-rich status and political symbolism.
As of now, the BJP alliance is ahead in 115 wards of the BMC. Within the alliance, the BJP leads in 86 wards, while Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena has an edge in 29 wards. The combined Thackeray factions Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) are leading in 77 wards, with Uddhav’s Sena ahead in 71 and Raj Thackeray’s MNS in six. The results suggest a sluggish performance for the Thackeray cousins in their bid to retain control of the civic body.
The BMC, with an annual budget exceeding Rs 74,400 crore, saw a highly competitive contest with 1,700 candidates vying for 227 seats. The elections were held after a nine-year gap and a four-year delay, raising the stakes for all political parties involved.
In the previous BMC elections in 2017, the united Shiv Sena prior to the party’s split had maintained firm control over the civic body, reflecting its decades-long dominance in Mumbai’s municipal politics. The current results indicate a shift in the political landscape, with the BJP-Shinde combine making significant inroads.
As counting continues, the focus remains on whether the BJP alliance can consolidate its lead and secure a majority in the BMC, while the Thackeray factions assess their next steps after a performance that falls short of expectations in India’s richest municipal corporation.
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