BMC Election 2026 Date: Maharashtra Braces Civic Polls on Jan 15 Amid Intense Mahayuti vs MVA Showdown

On 15th December, the polling for the elections for 29 Municipal Corporations in Maharashtra, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), will be held on January 15, with the results to be announced on January 16, the State Election Commission said on Monday.

From December 23 to 30 is the period to file nominations, and scrutiny of the nominations will be done on December 31. January 2 is the last date to take back nominations, as the symbols will be distributed on January 3.

The Supreme Court of India had directed the State Election Commission to complete all local body elections by January 31, 2026, as the elections have been due since 2022.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation polls are expected to witness a direct contest between two major alliances in the state- the ruling Mahayuti and the Opposition’s Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). The Mahayuti, which governs the state, comprises the Bhartiya Janata Party, the Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde, and the Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

The main opposition alliance includes the Indian National Congress, the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) and the Shard Pawar-led faction of NCP-SP.

After 20 years apart, the Thackeray brothers, Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray, have come together following a row over Hindi imposition in the state and have vowed to contest the BMC polls together.

The estimated budget of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for the year 2025-26 is Rs 74,427 crore, and the expenditure stands at Rs 43,162 crore, representing 58 per cent of the total budget allocated to development projects. This gigantic budget is unmatched by any other state or municipal corporation in the country, cementing the BMC’s status as Asia’s wealthiest civic body.

Mumbai is the financial capital of the country, and as its key governing body, the BMC manages to oversee Infrastructure to health, roads to water supply, transport to power supply, sanitation and education.

The elections, which were due in 2022, will be held in January 2026. After a setback in the Lok Sabha elections and victory in the Assembly polls in 2024, the Mahayuti will look to develop a stronghold over the BMC. The MVA will look to dent the Mahayuti’s chances, making a comeback in Maharashtra’s electoral politics.

For this municipal election, the State Election Commission said that they will be using the voter list as of the notified date of July 1, 2025.

The Opposition has raised electoral fraud as an issue ahead of the polls. Shiv Sena UBT MLA Aaditya Thackeray demanded that the Election Commission extend the days for raising objections to the draft rolls of the BMC elections.

(INPUTS FROM ANI)