Mahayuti finalises 207 of 227 BMC seats, BJP and Shinde’s Shiv Sena to contest jointly

The ruling Mahayuti alliance has reached consensus on 207 of the 227 seats for the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, with the BJP contesting 128 seats and the Shinde-led Shiv Sena 79 , BJP city chief Amit Satam said on Saturday. Talks are ongoing for the remaining 20 seats.

The BMC elections , scheduled for January 15, 2026 , will be held in a single phase across 29 municipal corporations in Maharashtra , including Mumbai. Counting of votes will take place on January 16. Nominations are open from December 23 to December 30, 2025, with the last date for withdrawal on January 2, 2026. The final list of candidates will be published on January 3, 2026.

The elections are significant as the BMC is responsible for urban governance, infrastructure, sanitation, and local administration in Mumbai, India’s largest city and financial capital. Control of the civic body is politically important, as it enhances a party’s visibility and influence in both state and national politics, while shaping public perception of governance.

The Mahayuti alliance comprises the BJP, Shinde-led Shiv Sena, and coordination with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) . A joint meeting of the BJP and Shiv Sena finalised election strategy, including campaign issues, election management, joint rallies of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and deputy chief ministers, and coordinated programmes, Satam said. He stressed that the focus is on delivering corruption-free administration, rather than the number of seats each party contests. “This alliance is for Hindutva and for giving Mumbai a corruption-free administration,” he added.

Reflecting on the November 2024 assembly elections, Satam noted that BJP workers had contested on the ‘bow and arrow’ symbol of the Shiv Sena, while some of Shinde’s leaders fought on the BJP’s ‘lotus’ symbol.

The Mahayuti faces a formidable challenge from the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) alliance. With 20 seats still under discussion, the final candidate list could play a key role in determining results in tightly contested areas.

The BMC has 227 seats with an electorate of 1,03,44,315 voters, comprising 55,16,707 men, 48,26,509 women, and 1,099 others. Men constitute 53 per cent of the electorate, while women account for 47 per cent.

Looking back at the 2017 BMC elections, the undivided Shiv Sena was the single largest party with 84 seats, followed by the BJP with 82. Since then, 46 corporators from Shiv Sena joined the Shinde-led faction, along with 16 corporators from other parties, while the BJP gained six corporators from other parties , reshaping the political landscape ahead of the 2026 polls.

With strategic seat-sharing and coordinated campaigning, the Mahayuti is well-positioned to put up a strong show , with joint rallies expected to energise its voter base. However, local issues, candidate popularity, and the performance of rival alliances will remain decisive factors in the election outcome.