Maha: Will Polling for 29 Municipal Corporations Including Mumbai Take Place Tomorrow?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- Polling for 29 municipal corporations will occur on January 14.
- Counting of votes is scheduled for January 16.
- Over 3.48 crore eligible voters are expected to participate.
- Special provisions for senior citizens and persons with disabilities are in place.
- Unique voting systems are employed based on region.
Mumbai, Jan 14 (NationPress) Voting is set for Thursday in 29 municipal corporations across Maharashtra, featuring the pivotal Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The counting of ballots is planned for Friday.
Initially, elections were slated for 2,869 seats, but with 68 candidates winning unopposed, polling will now occur for 2,801 seats.
The list of 29 corporations includes two newly established civic bodies: Jalna and Ichalkaranji, along with major urban centers such as Nagpur, Pune, Thane, Nashik, and Navi Mumbai, many of which have been under administrative control since their terms lapsed between 2020 and 2023.
A unique voting approach will be implemented across different areas. In Mumbai (BMC), the single-member ward system allows each voter to cast one ballot for their ward representative. Conversely, the remaining 28 corporations will utilize a multi-member ward system, with most wards containing four seats.
A significant logistical effort is underway to facilitate the participation of 3.48 crore eligible voters. According to the State Election Commission (SEC), there are 39,147 polling stations, equipped with 43,958 Control Units and 87,916 Ballot Units.
In Mumbai alone, there are 10,111 polling stations, outfitted with 11,349 Control Units and 22,698 Ballot Units.
The SEC has utilized the Assembly voter lists from July 1, 2025 for the elections. To mitigate electoral fraud, potential duplicate names have been denoted with double asterisks (**). These voters have undergone prior verification through door-to-door outreach.
If a voter with a flagged name arrives at a booth without verification, they must present a formal undertaking (indemnity bond) and valid identification before being permitted to cast their vote.
The SEC has developed a mobile application (available on the Google Play Store) to assist citizens in locating their names, polling locations, and candidate information using their name or EPIC (Voter ID) number.
Priority will be given to senior citizens, persons with disabilities (PwD), pregnant women, and mothers with infants.
All polling stations are required to have ramps and wheelchairs. In areas with a high density of women voters, special “Pink Booths” staffed solely by female officers and police personnel have been established.
To uphold privacy and prevent conflicts, the SEC has strictly forbidden mobile phones within polling booths.