Voting began on Thursday across 29 municipal corporations in Maharashtra, with the spotlight on Mumbai's Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) where the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance faces a fierce battle from the reunited Thackeray cousins. A total of 3.48 crore voters will decide the fate of 15,931 candidates, including 1,700 vying for 227 BMC seats. Polling runs from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Voting for civic polls in Maharashtra's 29 municipal corporations commenced on January 15, 2026, marking the first such elections in nine years. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), with an annual budget exceeding ₹74,400 crore, is at the center of attention as the first polls since the 2022 Shiv Sena split. The undivided Shiv Sena controlled India's richest civic body from 1997 to 2022.
Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT) and Raj Thackeray's MNS reunited last month after two decades to consolidate Marathi votes. In Mumbai, the Congress has broken from its Maha Vikas Aghadi allies to ally with Prakash Ambedkar's Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi and the Rashtriya Samaj Paksh.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis defended the BJP's aggressive campaign, stating, "These local body elections are driven by karyakartas (grassroots workers). It is our duty to support and stand by our karyakartas." The Thackeray cousins emphasized Marathi manoos sentiment, with Raj Thackeray saying, "Now, Modi-Shah have let loose industrialists to grab Mumbai’s land."
Over 25,000 police personnel are deployed in Mumbai, with 10,231 polling stations staffed by 64,375 officers. Counting is scheduled for January 16. While Mumbai has single-member wards, others have multi-member wards. Nine of the corporations are in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.
Celebrities like Akshay Kumar urged voters after casting ballots, saying, "I request all Mumbaikars to come out in large numbers and vote." RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat voted in Nagpur and remarked, "In a democratic setup, voting is the duty of every citizen."
