The BJP-led Mahayuti alliance has emerged as the frontrunner in Maharashtra’s assembly elections, surpassing the majority mark with early trends on Saturday showing it leading in 214 out of 288 seats. The vote counting began at 8 am on Saturday for both Maharashtra and Jharkhand, with the BJP-led NDA alliance also ahead in Jharkhand.
The Maharashtra election, held on November 20, saw a voter turnout of 66%, higher than the 61% recorded in the previous election of 2019. The Mahayuti alliance, consisting of the BJP, Shiv Sena, and Congress, is focused on retaining power in the state, while the Congress-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), which includes Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SCP), is trying to reclaim control from the BJP.
This is the first assembly election in Maharashtra following the split in Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party. Most exit polls predicted a victory for the BJP-led alliance, although some suggested a tight race. The BJP contested 149 seats, Shiv Sena contested 81, and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP fielded candidates in 59 constituencies. On the opposition side, Congress contested 101 seats, Shiv Sena (UBT) 95, and NCP (SCP) 86 seats. Smaller unaligned parties, such as the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM), contested 237 and 17 seats, respectively.
In Jharkhand, the NDA fielded candidates in 68 seats, while its ally, the AJSU Party, contested ten seats. The opposition INDIA bloc, comprising the JMM, Congress, RJD, and CPI(ML), fielded candidates in 43, 30, 6, and 4 constituencies, respectively. Both states’ outcomes will have significant political implications as the results unfold.