Mah MLC polls: Polling set for June 18, counting on 22nd
   Date :19-May-2026

Mah MLC polls Polling set for June 18 counting on 22nd
 
 
Staff Reporter :
 
ECI announces poll schedule for 16 seats, including by-poll for seat vacated by Chandrashekhar Bawankule
 
 
The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday announced the schedule for Maharashtra Legislative Council elections, including the much-anticipated by-election for the Nagpur Local Authorities’ Constituency seat vacated by senior BJP leader and Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule. Polling for the Nagpur seat, along with biennial elections for 16 other Legislative Council constituencies across Maharashtra, will be held on June 18. Among 16 seats, four from Vidarbha are also going to polls. The counting of votes is scheduled for June 22. The Model Code of Conduct has come into force with immediate effect in the concerned constituencies.
 
The Nagpur Local Authorities’ Constituency seat fell vacant after Chandrashekhar Bawankule resigned from the Legislative Council on November 23, 2024, following his election to the Legislative Assembly. The term of this seat will end on January 1, 2028, making the by-election politically significant for major parties in Vidarbha. It means the candidate who wins will get to work for one-and-a-half years. The term of the most seats among 16 ended in 2022. The elections were pending because of the elections of local body were not held as the matter on OBC reservation was pending in court. The members of the local bodies are the voters for these polls.
 
The elections had remained pending due to constitutional requirements mandating that at least 75 per cent of local bodies and electors in a constituency must be in place before polls are conducted. The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Maharashtra has now confirmed that the required conditions have been fulfilled in all constituencies, clearing the way for the elections. 
 
Four seats of Vidarbha The four seats from Vidarbha include
 
Yavatmal: Dushyant Chaturvedi (December 5, 2022), Bhandara-cum-Gondia: Dr Parinay Fuke (December 5, 2022) (Dr Fuke became of Member of Legislative Council on a seat whose nomination is made by Governor of Maharashtra); Wardha-cum-Chandrapur- Gadchiroli: late Ramdas Ambatkar (June 21, 2024), Amravati: Pravin Pote (June 21, 2026). The other constituencies going to polls are Solapur, Ahilyanagar, Thane, Jalgaon, Sangli- cum-Satara, Nanded, Pune, Raigad-cum-Ratnagiri-cum-Sindhudurg, Nashik, Osmanabad-cum-Latur- cum-Beed, Parbhani-cum-Hingoli, and Aurangabad-cum-Jalna.