The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday (May 18) announced elections to 16 seats of the Maharashtra Legislative Council, with polling scheduled for June 18 and counting of votes on June 22.
The Commission said the terms of office of members representing 16 Local Authorities' Constituencies in Maharashtra had expired at different points between 2022 and 2025. However, elections could not be conducted earlier due to the non-fulfilment of mandatory criteria related to the functioning of local bodies and the availability of electors.
Poll schedule
According to the poll schedule, the official notification for the elections will be issued on May 25, 2026. The last date for filing nominations is June 1, while scrutiny of nomination papers will take place on June 2. Candidates can withdraw their nominations till June 4.
Polling for all 16 seats will be conducted on June 18 between 8 am and 4 pm. The entire election process is expected to be completed by June 25.
The Election Commission also announced that the Model Code of Conduct has come into immediate effect in the concerned constituencies following the declaration of the election schedule.
Constituencies going to poll
The constituencies going to polls are: Solapur, Ahmednagar, Thane, Jalgaon, Sangli-cum-Satara, Nanded, Yavatmal, Pune, Bhandara-cum-Gondia, Raigad-cum-Ratnagiri-cum-Sindhudurg, Nashik, Wardha-cum-Chandrapur-cum-Gadchiroli, Amravati, Osmanabad-cum-Latur-cum-Beed, Parbhani-cum-Hingoli and Aurangabad-cum-Jalna. Several prominent political figures had represented these seats earlier, including Prashant Paricharak, Chandubhai Patel and Ambadas Danve.
By-election to Maharashtra Legislative Council from Nagpur
The poll body also announced a by-election to the Maharashtra Legislative Council from the Nagpur Local Authorities' constituency. As per the schedule, the polling will be held on June 18, and the result will be announced on June 22.
The vacancy arose after Chandrashekhar Bawankule vacated the seat following his election to the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in November 2024.
The Commission said the bypoll could not be conducted earlier due to the non-fulfillment of mandatory criteria related to the functioning of local bodies and the availability of electors. With those conditions now fulfilled, polling for the Nagpur seat will be held on June 18, 2026, alongside the biennial elections for 16 Legislative Council seats.
The schedule for nominations, scrutiny, withdrawal of candidature, and counting will remain the same as that of the main Council elections.
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