ECI announces May 12 Maharashtra Council polls as 9 MLCs, including Uddhav, to retire

The Election Commission of India (ECI) Thursday announced that biennial elections to nine seats of the Maharashtra Legislative Council will be held on May 12.

The elections have been declared as MLCs Sanjay Kishanrao Kenekar, Neelam Diwakar Gorhe, Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray, Sandeep Diwakar Joshi, Dadarao Yadavrao Keche, Amol Ramkrushna Mitkari, Ranjitsinh Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil, Rajesh Dhondiram Rathod, and Shashikant Jaywantrao Shinde are set to retire on May 13. Out of these, four are from the BJP and one each from the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), Shiv Sena, NCP, and the NCP (SP).

A quota of 29 votes is required for a candidate to be elected to the Legislative Council. Given the current strength of the Mahayuti alliance – comprising the BJP (131 MLAs), Shiv Sena (57 MLAs), and NCP-SP (40 MLAs) – eight of their candidates can be elected. On the other hand, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has a total strength of 46, which means only one of their candidates can secure a win.