Maharashtra MLC polls: Voting Underway for Pune, Nagpur, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Seats

Pune, 23rd October 2026: Voting is underway for five Maharashtra Legislative Council seats in the graduates’ and teachers’ constituencies, with 182 candidates in the fray and around 10 lakh voters eligible to decide their fate.

Polling is being held for the Pune, Nagpur and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar graduates’ constituencies and the Pune and Amravati teachers’ constituencies. Voting began at 8am and will continue until 4pm.

The elections have witnessed challenges from rebel candidates and Independents, making the contests significant for the ruling Mahayuti and opposition parties.

Pune division: 77 candidates in the fray

In the Pune division, polling is being held across Pune, Solapur, Satara, Sangli and Kolhapur districts. A total of 1,051 polling stations have been set up for the graduates’ and teachers’ constituencies, where 4,49,959 voters are eligible to cast their ballots.

The graduates’ constituency has 47 candidates, while 30 are contesting the teachers’ seat.

The main contest in the Pune teachers’ constituency is expected to be between Shiv Sena candidate Sachin Sanap, Congress nominee Jayant Asgaonkar and BJP candidate Kaustubh Gawade.

In the graduates’ constituency, Mahayuti candidate Smita Jadhav faces a challenge from Harshada Deshmukh-Jadhav of the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP).

Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil visited polling booths in Kolhapur during the morning and welcomed voters with roses. He expressed confidence that both Mahayuti candidates would win by a comfortable margin, claiming they would secure more than 50% of the votes.

Responding to a question about Congress leader Ravindra Dhangekar’s stand, Patil said all Mahayuti leaders, including himself, should exercise caution while making public statements as members of the alliance.

Polling arrangements across constituencies

The Pune graduates’ constituency has 3,88,019 voters and 741 polling stations, while the teachers’ constituency has 61,940 voters and 310 polling stations.

In the Nagpur graduates’ constituency, 445 polling stations have been set up across Nagpur, Chandrapur, Wardha, Gondia, Bhandara and Gadchiroli districts. The constituency has 2,25,603 eligible voters.

The Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar graduates’ constituency, covering eight districts of the Marathwada region, has 3,26,700 voters and 842 polling stations.

The Amravati teachers’ constituency has 35,810 eligible voters, with polling being held at 81 centres across Amravati, Buldhana, Yavatmal, Akola and Washim districts.

11 identity documents accepted

Besides the Elector Photo Identity Card (EPIC), voters can use any one of 10 alternative identity documents to establish their identity.

These include Aadhaar cards, driving licences, PAN cards, passports, service identity cards issued by government departments and public sector undertakings, identity cards issued to MPs, MLAs and MLCs, and service cards issued by educational institutions where registered teachers or graduates work.

Original degree or diploma certificates issued by universities, original disability certificates issued by competent authorities and Unique Disability Identity (UDID) cards are also accepted.

Polling will determine who secures representation in the Maharashtra Legislative Council from the five constituencies, with counting scheduled for October 27.