Assembly elections voting in Maharashtra, Jharkhand today

The Maha Vikas Aghadi and the ruling Mahayuti will lock horns on Wednesday, as the people of Maharashtra will elect representatives to the state’s 288-strong assembly. A pitched electoral battle will also be witnessed in Jharkhand, where the JMM-led alliance will take on the BJP in the second phase of polling.

The Election Commission will also conduct by-polls in 15 assembly seats across Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Kerala, and Uttarakhand. The counting of votes will take place on November 23.
Maharashtra Assembly elections

Maharashtra will witness an intense battle between the leaders of the Mahayuti alliance and Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). Leaders of both camps undertook extensive campaigns and made major pre-poll promises. Political observers stated that local factors would also have a significant role in deciding the electoral outcome.

This is the first assembly election since the Shiv Sena and NCP split into rival factions led by Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar respectively.

Voting will begin at 7 am and will end at 6 pm. A total of 4,136 candidates are in the fray which includes 2,086 independent contenders. The state has about 9.70 crore voters.The BJP is contesting in 149 seats, Shiv Sena 81, and NCP 59 constituencies. The Congress has fielded 101 candidates, Shiv Sena (UBT) 95, and NCP (SP) has fielded 86 candidates. BSP is contesting in 237 seats.

Key candidates in the fray include CM Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister and BJP candidate Devendra Fadanvis, Ajit Pawar, Aaditya Thackeray, Milind Deora and Nana Patole among many others.