MLC Elections 2026: Voting Begins for 28 Council Seats in 4 States
Image: Deccan Chronicle (representational)
Voting began at 8 am on Friday, 23 October, for 28 seats in the Legislative Councils of four states: Bihar (8), Uttar Pradesh (11), Maharashtra (5) and Karnataka (4). The seats are in graduates’ and teachers’ constituencies, polling closes at 4 pm, and the Election Commission has fixed counting for Tuesday, 27 October, with the whole process to finish by 31 October.
Only Registered Graduates and Teachers Vote
These are not general elections, so most residents have no vote. Only graduates and teachers enrolled in each constituency can cast a ballot. In Bihar the electorate is 5,32,847 across 933 polling stations, including 1,46,611 women, according to PTI. In Uttar Pradesh, UNI reported more than 14.81 lakh voters and 2,697 booths, with 152 candidates left after withdrawals.
Patna Graduates Seat Exposes a Split in JD(U)
In Bihar, 150 candidates are contesting eight seats. The BJP has fielded four candidates, three of them sitting MLCs, and the JD(U) the other four. Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party is contesting all eight. In the Patna graduates’ seat, Mokama MLA Anant Singh is backing the Jan Suraaj candidate against the JD(U) nominee, former minister Neeraj Kumar, who is seeking a fourth term.
In Maharashtra, the BJP, Congress, NCP, the two Shiv Sena factions and NCP (SP) are in the race for graduates’ seats in Pune, Nagpur and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and teachers’ seats in Amravati and Pune. In Uttar Pradesh, Congress has stayed out, leaving the BJP and the Samajwadi Party as the main contenders, The Week reported. Earlier coverage on IPB: the Rajya Sabha by-election in Madhya Pradesh.
Results Due 27 October, Terms End From 16 November
Counting begins on 27 October. The terms of the sitting Bihar MLCs expire on 16 November, and the retiring members in the other states leave in November and December. Turnout figures had not been released at the time of writing. More on the day’s developments is in IPB’s Daily Updates.
Source: Based on reporting by Deccan Chronicle (PTI), ANI, India TV, UNI and The Week.
Image: Deccan Chronicle (representational).
