Maharashtra and Jharkhand Assembly Elections Announced, Results on Nov 23

The Election Commission of India on Tuesday announced the dates for the Maharashtra and Jharkhand Assembly Elections. The Maharashtra Assembly elections will be held in a single phase on November 20, 2024. In Jharkhand, the polls will take place in two phases on November 13 and November 20. The results for both states will be declared on November 23.

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar noted that the elections for Maharashtra were postponed from earlier this month due to security considerations for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections. In addition to the assembly elections, the ECI has also scheduled by-elections for three Lok Sabha seats and at least 47 vacant assembly seats.

In Maharashtra, the BJP is aiming to regain power through its alliance with the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena. The BJP plans to contest 105 seats, while the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) will contest 40 and the Nationalist Congress Party will vie for 41. This leaves 102 seats still unallocated. On the other hand the Opposition comprising of Shive Sena (Uddhav Thakeray faction), Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray Faction) and Congress, that bagged 30 out of 40 Lok Sabha seats is optimistic about giving a tough fight. The current term of the Maharashtra Assembly concludes on November 26.

In Jharkhand's 81-seat Assembly, the INDIA bloc holds 44 seats while the BJP has 30, with seven seats currently vacant. Jharkhand's term concludes on January 5, 2025.