BMC Elections 2026: Mahayuti Finalises Seat Share, BJP To Contest 137 Seats, Shiv Sena At 90

The Mahayuti alliance has finalised its seat-sharing arrangement for the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections. Under the agreed formula as per a post on X from Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will contest 137 wards, while the Shiv Sena will field candidates in 90.

Both parties plan to allocate a portion of their seats to smaller allies within the coalition. According to a Shiv Sena press release, candidates from both BJP and Shiv Sena are expected to file their nominations on Tuesday.

Another constituent of Mahayuti, the NCP, headed by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, is contesting the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation polls separately.

The NCP (AP) has so far announced 64 candidates for the BMC polls.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal announced that the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) will contest 62 out of the 227 seats as part of its alliance in the BMC polls. As per media reports, Sapkal emphasised that for the Congress, the elections are not about a power struggle but about promoting shared ideas.

The Maharashtra State Election Commission has scheduled elections for 29 municipal corporations across the state, including Mumbai, Pune, and Pimpri-Chinchwad. Voting for Mumbai’s 227 wards will take place on January 15, with counting set for January 16.

In the 2017 Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections for 227 seats, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) made significant gains in Mumbai, traditionally considered a Shiv Sena stronghold.

The BJP secured 82 seats, coming just two short of the undivided Shiv Sena, which led the tally. The Congress finished third with 31 seats, while the undivided Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) were reduced to 9 and 7 seats, respectively.