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The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday announced the schedule for biennial elections to the Maharashtra Legislative Council.

The elections will be conducted by Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) to fill seats of members retiring in May 2026.

A total of nine members of the Council are set to retire on May 13, 2026. These include prominent leaders such as Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, along with Sanjay Kenekar, Neelam Gorhe, Sandeep Joshi, Dadarao Keche, Amol Mitkari, Ranjitsinh Mohite-Patil, Rajesh Rathod and Shashikant Shinde.

For these nine seats, the election will be carried out by MLAs of the state assembly, which has a strength of 288 members.

Polling to be held in May

According to the announced schedule, the election process will begin with the issue of notification on April 23, 2026.

The last date for filing nominations is April 30, while scrutiny will take place on May 2.

Candidates can withdraw their nominations until May 4.

Polling is scheduled for May 12, 2026 between 9 am and 4 pm, followed by counting of votes on the same day at 5 pm.

The entire election process is expected to be completed by May 13, 2026.

By-elections also announced

In addition to the biennial elections, the Election Commission has also announced two separate by-elections to Legislative Councils in different states. These include one seat in Maharashtra and another in Bihar.

The Maharashtra seat became vacant following the resignation of Pradnya Rajeev Satav, while the Bihar seat was vacated after Mangal Pandey was elected to the state Legislative Assembly.

Schedule for Bye-elections

The by-elections will follow the same schedule as the biennial polls. Voting will take place on May 12, 2026, with counting later that day. The process will conclude by May 13, 2026.