Biennial elections to nine seats of the Maharashtra legislative council, including the one vacated by former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, will be held on May 12 along with a bypoll to one seat, the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced on Thursday.
Voting for all 10 seats will take place between 9 am and 4 pm on May 12, with the counting of votes scheduled for 5 pm the same day. The entire process is expected to be completed by May 13.
The tenure of nine members of the legislative council is due to end on May 13, necessitating the elections. Apart from Uddhav Thackeray, eight other retiring members include legislative council chairperson Neelam Diwakar Gorhe, Sanjay Kishanrao Kenekar, Sandeep Diwakar Joshi, Dadarao Yadavrao Keche, Ranjitsinh Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil, Amol Ramkrushna Mitkari, Rajesh Dhondiram Rathod, and Shashikant Jaywantrao Shinde.
The nine seats will go to polls as part of the regular biennial election, while a separate by-election will be conducted for the vacancy caused by Congress member Pradnya Satav's resignation. The term of Satav, who joined the BJP, was originally due to end on July 27, 2030.
The ECI said separate voting processes will be followed for the nine seats and the bypoll seat, requiring MLAs to cast their votes twice on the same day. The quota for winning a seat in the biennial election has been fixed at 29 votes, while the by-election will require 144 votes.
Principal secretary (legislative assembly and legislative council) Jitendra Bhole has been appointed as the returning officer for the nine seats, while Vilas Athawale will oversee the by-election process. Given the current strength in the assembly, the ruling Mahayuti alliance is expected to comfortably win a majority of the seats.
