Andhra Pradesh held elections to 92 urban local bodies (ULBs) on Sunday, 1 November 2026, with Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MLA and Tollywood star N. Balakrishna, several state ministers, and senior party leaders among the first to exercise their franchise. Polling began at 7 am across 11,378 polling centres and was scheduled to conclude at 5 pm, with nearly 99.35 lakh voters deciding the fate of 10,262 candidates contesting mayoral, chairperson, and ward-level posts.

Prominent Faces at the Polling Booth

N. Balakrishna, the Hindupur MLA, cast his vote accompanied by his wife Vasundhara at a polling centre in Hindupur, Sri Sathya Sai district. Speaking to reporters after voting, he underscored the significance of the democratic exercise. 'Everyone should cast a vote as it helps to elect good leaders for undertaking development and welfare programmes,' he said, urging all eligible voters to participate.

Minister for Civil Supplies and Jana Sena Party (JSP) leader Nadendla Manohar voted in Tenali, Guntur district. Endowments Minister Anam Ramnarayan Reddy cast his vote in Atmakur, Sri Potti Sriramulu Nellore district, while Minister for Women and Child Welfare and Tribal Welfare Gummadi Sandhya Rani participated in voting at Saluru, Parvathipuram Manyam district.

In Vijayawada, Jana Sena's Mayor candidate Vangaveeti Radha and Independent candidate and former IPS officer A.B. Venkateshwar Rao also cast their votes. TDP state president Palla Srinivasa Rao polled his vote in Visakhapatnam. Leaders of the ruling TDP, its allies JSP and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), as well as the principal opposition YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), were all represented at various booths across the state.

Scale of the Elections

Polling is being conducted across 13 Municipal Corporations and 79 of the 87 Municipalities and Nagar Panchayats. A total of 153 candidates are in contention for mayor posts across the 13 municipal corporations, while 367 candidates are contesting chairperson posts in 70 Municipalities. According to the State Election Commission (SEC), 3,077 candidates are vying for 804 municipal wards, and 6,669 candidates are contesting 2,382 wards in Municipalities and Nagar Panchayats.

Notably, elections for the posts of chairpersons of 17 Municipalities and Nagar Panchayats were unanimous, and both chairpersons and ward members were elected unopposed in eight such bodies. Of the total 922 corporator wards, polling is being held for 804, as elections were uncontested in the remaining 118 wards.

Security and Conduct

Tight security arrangements have been deployed across all polling centres, the SEC confirmed. The elections cover a wide geographic spread — from coastal Andhra to the Rayalaseema and northern tribal districts — underscoring the logistical complexity of conducting simultaneous ULB polls across the state.

What Comes Next

With counting yet to be scheduled, the results of these municipal elections will serve as an important political barometer for the TDP-led coalition government, which came to power in the 2024 state assembly elections. Urban local body outcomes are closely watched as indicators of ruling alliance strength at the grassroots level ahead of future electoral cycles.