Who Will Be Mumbai’s 78th Mayor? Election Likely on February 11

Mumbai: The suspense over who will become Mumbai’s 78th mayor continues to grip the city. The new mayoral election is likely to take place on February 11, when all 227 elected BMC corporators will cast their votes to select the city’s next mayor. Following the mayoral election, voting for chairpersons of key committees such as Standing and Improvement Committees may take place on February 16. All 227 corporators completed their registration by Monday evening. As of last week, all parties except BJP and Shiv Sena had registered their corporators.

How the Election Will Be Conducted
The mayoral election will be held in the BMC Corporation Hall, where all corporators will vote. Each party will nominate candidates based on their strength in the BMC and in accordance with reservation rules. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes will be elected mayor. Parties can also nominate separate candidates for the post of Deputy Mayor, who will be elected in a similar voting process. The tenure of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor is two-and-a-half years, after which a new election is held following the same procedure.

A Woman Will Lead the BMC
This time, the mayoral post is reserved for a woman, meaning Mumbai will have a female mayor. The BJP, the largest party in the BMC, may field either Sheelat Gambhir from Dadar or Ritu Taude from Ghatkopar as its candidate. The party has appointed senior leader Ganesh Khankar as its BMC leader. Meanwhile, Shiv Sena has appointed Amay Ghole as its party leader, and Kishori Pednekar, former mayor, has been named the leader of the opposition by Shiv Sena UBT.

The upcoming election promises to be closely watched as the city awaits the announcement of its new leadership.