Devendra Fadnavis, Eknath Shinde, Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray (File photo) NEW DELHI: Maharashtra's state assembly elections held on Wednesday, November 20, across all 288 constituencies in a single phase. Polling took place between 7am and 6pm. The Election Commission announced that vote counting will begin on Saturday, November 23 from 8am.
Key alliances in the fray The electoral battle in Maharashtra has seen intense competition between two key alliances. Mahayuti alliance (NDA): Led by the BJP, the alliance also includes Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar's faction of the NCP. Maha Vikas Aghadi (INDIA bloc): The opposition alliance comprises the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and Sharad Pawar 's NCP faction.
Both alliances have campaigned vigorously to secure a majority and form the government. Exit poll results: Mixed predictions Following the conclusion of voting, exit poll results were released. A compilation by TOI and posts on X from official news media handles revealed varied predictions: Six out of 10 exit polls favored the Mahayuti.
One predicted a neck-and-neck contest. Three gave the edge to the opposition INDIA bloc (Maha Vikas Aghadi). The EC's guidelines ensure that exit polls are published only after polling concludes to prevent any influence on voters.
Record voter turnout in 30 years This year’s voter turnout reached 66%, the highest in three decades. It marked a significant rise from the 61.1% turnout recorded in 2019.
The last time voter partic.
