Overview
- Counting started at 10 am on Friday across 29 municipal corporations, with Mumbai using 23 centres and phased, two-ward-at-a-time tabulation under tight security.
- Early TV trends around 10:20 am showed the BJP leading in 25 BMC wards and Shiv Sena (UBT) in 23, with the Eknath Shinde-led Sena, Congress and MNS trailing in single digits.
- Multiple exit polls, including Axis My India and JVC, projected the BJP–Shiv Sena (Mahayuti) alliance as the largest bloc in the 227-seat BMC.
- The State Election Commissioner estimated turnout at roughly 46–50% statewide, while Mumbai recorded about 52.9% from over 1 crore eligible voters.
- Election authorities are probing viral videos alleging removable ink, as polling day also saw complaints of missing names and booth changes, including BJP minister Ganesh Naik being unable to vote.