MMR civic poll results show fragmented mandates and localised voting

The civic election results across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region MMR have produced a mosaic of political mandatesmdashranging from emphatic oneparty dominance to fractured verdictsmdashhighlighting how local leadership neighbourhood dynamics and wardlevel governance continue to shape urban politics beyond broader state or national narrativesFrom sweeping victories and political consolidation to razorthin margins and hung houses outcomes in Thane Bhiwandi KalyanndashDombivli and MiraBhayandar underline a region voting not as a single bloc but ward by ward As parties now move swiftly into postpoll negotiations the results reaffirm a core tenet of civic politics power in the MMR is built as much on local credibility as on party symbolsShinde tightens grip on ThaneThe elections to the Thane Municipal Corporation delivered a decisive mandate in favour of Eknath Shindersquos Shiv Sena which secured 75 of the 131 seats Alliance partner Bharatiya Janata Party BJP finished a distant second with 28 seatsWithin the Mahayuti alliance the Shiv Sena contested 87 seats the BJP 40 while four were allotted to smaller allies The Nationalist Congress Party Sharad Pawar faction won 12 seats while the Nationalist Congress Party Ajit Pawar faction secured nine The All India MajliseIttehadul Muslimeen won five seats while one independent candidate was electedThe Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray managed just one seat while the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena MNS and the Indian National Congress failed to open their accountsThe outcome marks a further consolidation of power since the 2017 polls when a united Shiv Sena had won 67 seats Following the party split 66 of those corporators shifted allegiance to Shindersquos faction cementing his dominance in the city The 2026 verdict reinforces Thane as Shindersquos political stronghold with the BJP emerging as the principal challengerBhiwandi delivers fractured mandateThe BhiwandindashNizampur Municipal Corporation elections resulted in a split verdict placing the Congress at the centre of postpoll negotiations without delivering it a clear mandate to governPolling witnessed steady turnout though complaints of faulty EVM buttons missing voter names and long queues were reported from several wardsThe Congress which fielded the highest number of candidates converted 30 of its 58 contestants into winners but fell short of a majority The BJP contesting 32 seats won 22 retaining a strong organisational footprint particularly in mixed residentialcommercial pocketsThe Shiv Sena won 12 of the 20 seats it contested while the NCP SP also secured 12 seats despite contesting 37 Both parties are expected to play a decisive role in coalitionbuilding talksSeveral parties failed to win a single seat despite wide contestation including the Shiv Sena UBT Aam Aadmi Party AIMIM Ajit Pawarled NCP Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi and MNS The Samajwadi Party won six seats while local outfitsmdashKonark Vikas Aghadi and Bhiwandi Vikas Aghadi Ekta Manchmdashtogether secured seven seats underscoring the continued relevance of neighbourhoodlevel leadership Independents managed just one win despite 121 candidates in the frayHighstakes contest in KalyanndashDombivliThe elections to the KalyanndashDombivli Municipal Corporation witnessed a multicornered highvoltage contest involving several alliances including the BJPndashShiv SenandashRPI combine the Shiv Sena UBTndashMNS alliance the CongressndashNCP SP front and the Ajit Pawarled NCPThe Mahayuti partnersmdashthe BJP and Shiv Senamdashcontested together in most wards and emerged with a commanding tally of 104 seats The BJP won 50 seats while the Shiv Sena secured 53 The Congress won two seats the MNS five the Shiv Sena UBT 11 and the NCP SP one seatBJP tops MiraBhayandarIn MiraBhayandar the BJP emerged as the single largest party winning 78 seats in the municipal corporation elections The Congress trailed far behind with 13 seats while the Shiv Sena secured three