Maharashtra civic polls: Congress shows why it is still a force to reckon with despite Mumbai damp squib

Congress

• Congress leads in 277 wards across Maharashtra, third after BJP and Shiv Sena
• Congress wins majority in Latur Municipal Corporation with 43 seats
• Congress struggles in Mumbai, winning just over 10 wards in BMC polls

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With Congress just managing to cross the double-digit mark in the all significant Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls, the party can take some positives from the fact that it has emerged as the party with the third highest wins in wards (277 upto 5pm) , eclipsing regional powerhouses like the Pawars and Thackerays.

An overall tally until now (5 pm) shows the Congress is leading in 277 wards across 29 municipal corporations in Maharashtra. Party-wise, that's the third highest, trailing only the BJP, which is at the top with 1264 wards, and Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena which is leading in 320 wards. To put things in perspective, the saffron party is leading in 1264 wards out of the total 2869 wards that went to polls.

The most shocking results are coming from the country's richest municipal corporation, BMC. For the Thackeray family, which has ruled here for decades, today is no less than a nightmare. Despite Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray coming together, the people of Mumbai have placed their trust in the BJP-Shinde alliance.

The Congress' figures, though impressive in the overall tally, have little contribution from Mumbai. Struggling with wins in just over 10 wards, the party failed to find resonance in the financial capital, dominated by the BJP and Thackeray narratives. In addition to its poor outing in Mumbai (BMC polls), the party has failed to open its account in Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation.

Earlier in the day, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi slammed the Election Commission over allegations that erasable ink was used during the Maharashtra civic polls, saying public trust in democracy had “collapsed”. Sharing a media report on X, Gandhi termed “vote chori” an anti-national act and accused the Election Commission of “gaslighting citizens”. Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray had earlier raised the allegation, accusing State Election Commissioner Dinesh Waghmare of siding with the ruling BJP-led alliance and demanding his suspension.

In both Mumbai and Pune, it's leading in thirteen and eight seats respectively. In Nashik and Jalna, it has maintained its lead in more than four wards. The situation isn't any better in Navi Mumbai and Thane. While it's leading in just two wards in Thane, it's yet to open its account in Navi Mumbai.

The party won elections to the Latur Municipal Corporation (LMC) in central Maharashtra on Friday (January 16, 2026), bagging a clear majority with 43 seats in the 70-member body, leaving the BJP a distant second with 22 seats.

The Congress is leading in only a handful of municipal corporations in Maharashtra. It has surged ahead of other parties in Bhinwadi Nizampur, Amravati, Chandrapur, eyeing control of these civic bodies in an apparent consolation prize while the BJP takes away the crucial ones. Though these are local body elections, the figures are crucial since they reflect the support base at the ground level and help the parties in strategising for bigger elections.