The elections will cover 32 district councils and 336 panchayat samitis across the state. For Mumbai alone, the BMC polls will elect 227 corporators, with reserved seats allocated across Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Backward Classes, and General categories. The SEC has appointed 23 Election Officers of Deputy Collector rank and 23 Assistant Election Officers of Tehsildar rank to oversee the process.
A total of 3.48 crore voters will exercise their franchise at 39,147 polling stations. To facilitate smooth voting, the SEC has deployed 43,958 control units and 87,916 ballot units. Some EVMs have been sourced from Madhya Pradesh to ensure adequate availability.
The BMC’s 2025-26 budget, estimated at ₹74,427 crore, underscores the significance of these elections, with development expenditure alone accounting for 58% of the total allocation. This positions the BMC as Asia’s wealthiest municipal corporation.
Over a dozen political parties are preparing for the polls, including the BJP, Shiv Sena (Shinde faction), Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray faction), NCP (Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar factions), Congress, MNS, Akhil Bharatiya Sena, Muslim League, RPI (Athawale faction), Bharip Bahujan Mahasangh, and the Aam Aadmi Party.
With elections now just over a month away, the SEC is engaged in finalising polling arrangements, ensuring voter lists, and testing EVMs. Political parties are strategising campaigns, alliances, and candidate selection for one of the most high-stakes local elections in the state, particularly in Mumbai, where civic governance directly impacts the city’s infrastructure, finances, and urban development projects.
