Maharashtra assembly elections scheduled on Nov 20, Jharkhand on Nov 13, 20

New Delhi, Oct 15: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced the dates for the 2024 assembly elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand.

According to the schedule released on October 15, Maharashtra will hold its elections in a single phase on November 20. Meanwhile, Jharkhand will vote in two phases, with the first round of polling on November 13, followed by the second phase on November 20. The counting of votes for both states will take place on November 23.

In a press conference held in New Delhi, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, along with Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, provided key details about the upcoming elections. For Maharashtra, the official gazette notification will be issued on October 22, with the last date for filing nominations set for October 29. Nominations will be scrutinized on October 30, and candidates will have until November 4 to withdraw their candidatures.

Maharashtra has a total of 9.64 crore eligible voters, including 4.94 crore men and 4.66 crore women, who will cast their votes at 1,00,186 polling stations. Notably, over 57,000 of these polling centres will be in rural areas. Both the ruling BJP-led Mahayuti alliance and the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) are yet to finalize their seat-sharing arrangements, adding pressure as the election date approaches.

In the 2019 elections, the BJP emerged as the largest party with 105 seats, followed by its then-ally, the Shiv Sena, which won 56 seats. The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) placed third and fourth, respectively. With the election dates now confirmed, political parties are expected to expedite negotiations and solidify their alliances.