Pune Municipal Elections Remain Highly Contested Despite Withdrawals; 1,165 Candidates in the Fray
Reported by Mubarak Ansari
Pune, 2nd January 2026: Even after the withdrawal of nominations, the political heat around the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) elections has not subsided. Although as many as 969 candidates withdrew their nominations over the past two days, a total of 1,165 valid candidates remain in the electoral fray for the final round. Before withdrawals, 2,134 valid candidates were contesting across the city’s 41 wards.
The civic elections, being held after a gap of nearly three years, have witnessed a distinct strategy from major political parties. Instead of announcing candidates early, parties issued AB forms directly to aspirants, prompting many to file nomination papers even before receiving official authorisation. This led to a surge in nominations, with several disgruntled aspirants contesting as independents after being denied party tickets.
However, in the final phase of withdrawals, all major political parties stepped up efforts to rein in rebellion. Party leaderships succeeded in persuading or politically accommodating most rebel candidates to withdraw, barring a few exceptions. As a result, large-scale open defiance has largely been brought under control.
Despite this, the post-withdrawal scenario indicates that the PMC elections will be fiercely contested and multi-cornered. In most wards, between 20 and 40 candidates remain in the race, raising the likelihood of significant vote division.
Ward-wise data shows that Ward No. 1 has 36 candidates, Ward 3 has 21, Ward 4 has 27, Ward 5 has 21, Ward 7 has 34, Ward 8 has 28, Ward 9 has 22, Ward 10 has 25, Ward 11 has 29, Ward 12 has 25, Ward 13 has 34, Ward 14 has 33, Ward 15 has 38, Ward 16 has 29, Ward 18 has 22, Ward 20 has 20, Ward 21 has 33, Ward 22 has 38, Ward 23 has 33, Ward 24 has 39, Ward 25 has 23, Ward 26 has 40, Ward 28 has 32, Ward 29 has 16, Ward 30 has 19, Ward 31 has 15, Ward 32 has 25, Ward 33 has 22, Ward 34 has 20, Ward 36 has 22, Ward 37 has 27, Ward 38 has 36, Ward 39 has 22, Ward 40 has 27, and Ward 41 has 27 candidates in the final list.
Notably, Wards No. 2 and 6 have the highest number of candidates, with 43 contestants each, while Ward 17 has 41 and Ward 19 has 40 candidates. Due to the large number of contestants, the election administration will need to deploy up to five EVMs at each polling station in these wards. The high candidate count is also expected to pose a challenge for voters navigating long ballot lists.
Meanwhile, Ward No. 35 has seen two candidates elected unopposed, leaving only seven candidates contesting the remaining two seats. As a result, the election in this ward is expected to be relatively calm compared to others.
While political parties have managed to curb rebellion to a large extent, the sheer number of candidates and the potential for vote splitting make it clear that the Pune Municipal Corporation elections will be closely fought, intense, and politically significant.
