The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has completed extensive preparations for the upcoming civic elections on January 15, 2026, establishing 2,600 polling locations equipped with a total of 10,231 polling booths throughout Mumbai. This marks an increase of 300 locations compared to the 2,300 used in the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, aimed at reducing overcrowding, alleviating traffic issues, and improving the overall voting experience.
Booths are distributed as follows: 4,704 in government buildings, 782 in cooperative housing societies, and 5,125 in private premises. The elections, delayed for nearly nine years, will allow approximately 1.03 crore voters—precisely 1,03,44,315 eligible participants, including 55,16,707 men, 48,26,509 women, and 1,099 others—to select from around 1,700 candidates.
Municipal Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani detailed voter-friendly arrangements during a recent press conference. Polling centres will feature amenities such as drinking water, waiting zones, hygienic restrooms, sufficient lighting, ramps, wheelchairs for persons with disabilities, and prominent signage. Priority queuing will be provided for senior citizens, pregnant women, and differently-abled individuals. Every ward will include a dedicated ‘Pink Sakhi’ booth operated fully by women personnel, including police and security staff.
To handle crowds effectively, roughly 4,500 volunteers will support queue management and assist vulnerable voters. Voter information slips have already reached about 60 lakh households door-to-door, with distribution for the remainder nearing completion in the coming days.
Officials addressed the issue of duplicate voter entries, identifying 1.68 lakh cases (either within the same ward or across different ones). Of these, 48,628 have submitted Annexure 2 to declare their preferred voting ward. The remaining 1.19 lakh voters must present two valid identity documents and fill out Annexure 2 at the booth to vote in their chosen ward, after which their name will be removed from the duplicate list. Gagrani indicated confidence that this process would proceed without significant disruptions.
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Polling hours are set from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm, one hour shorter than the Assembly election schedule. Voters entering the premises before 5:30 pm will receive a token and be allowed to cast their ballot, even if queues extend past closing time.
Regarding mobile phones, no formal prohibition has been issued by the State Election Commission. Gagrani recommended that voters refrain from bringing them or switch them off inside polling stations, citing past inconveniences during the Assembly polls when stricter rules applied.
These measures underscore the BMC’s commitment to a smooth, inclusive, and efficient electoral process under the Maharashtra State Election Commission’s supervision, as Mumbai prepares for this long-awaited civic contest.
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