The Election Commission will announce the dates for the Maharashtra and Jharkhand Assembly elections today afternoon. A press conference is scheduled for 3:30 PM, where the Commission will outline the election phases and preparations.
This year’s assembly elections in Maharashtra are particularly compelling. For the first time, the Shiv Sena and NCP will directly compete against each other after their faction splits. The Uddhav faction of Shiv Sena and Sharad Pawar’s NCP will form the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance, while the Shinde faction of Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar’s NCP will join forces under the Mahayuti alliance.
In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the Maha Vikas Aghadi performed strongly, winning 30 out of 48 seats, while the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance secured only 17 seats. However, following their success in Haryana, the BJP aims to regain momentum.
Currently, the Mahayuti alliance holds 218 of the 288 seats in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, including 106 from the BJP, 40 from Shiv Sena, 40 from NCP, and smaller contributions from other parties and independents. In contrast, the Maha Vikas Aghadi, the opposition, has 77 seats, with four MLAs remaining unaffiliated and one seat currently vacant.
In Jharkhand, elections for the 81 assembly seats may occur in two or three phases, compared to five phases in 2019. Polling is likely to take place after November 15, as political parties have recommended scheduling the elections following Chhath Puja, Birsa Jayanti, and State Foundation Day while minimizing the number of phases.
Although the Election Commission will announce the elections today, neither the NDA nor the I.N.D.I.A alliance has officially declared their seat-sharing arrangements for either state. The BJP has conducted multiple meetings with its allies, but they have yet to reach a consensus on seat distribution, and the I.N.D.I.A alliance faces a similar situation.