Andhra Pradesh municipal election results 2026 began taking shape on Tuesday as votes were counted across 92 urban local bodies, with the ruling Telugu Desam Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) leading in most civic bodies and expected to secure more than 90% of the wards and divisions, according to the Times of India report.
The counting covers 13 municipal corporations and 79 municipalities and Nagar Panchayats. Election officials and polling agents reached designated counting centres across the state amid security arrangements. In Visakhapatnam, officials and agents assembled at a counting centre near Andhra University Engineering College, where preparations were completed before the process began.
Election observer Tej Bharat and District Election Officer S Ramsundar Reddy inspected the counting process at the municipal vote counting centre in Rajiv Sports Ground. They also visited the strong rooms and instructed officials to ensure that votes were counted transparently, the report said.
The municipal elections were held on November 1, with polling conducted from 7am to 5pm. Repolling, wherever required, took place on November 2. Counting in Chirala was postponed to November 6 because of heavy rain in the coastal town.
The 13 municipal corporations included Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Guntur, Nellore, Kurnool, Kadapa and Tirupati. Counting also began in 66 municipal divisions. Tirupati recorded the lowest polling percentage in the municipal elections at 47%, according to the report.
The results are being closely watched because they represent a major political test for the NDA government led by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu after its victory in the 2024 Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections. They will also indicate the organisational and electoral position of the opposition YSR Congress Party in the state’s urban centres.
The Vijayawada Municipal Corporation mayoral contest is among the closely followed races. The candidates include NDA-backed Jana Sena nominee Vangaveeti Radhakrishna, YSR Congress Party candidate and former mayor Rayana Bhagyalakshmi, and independent candidate A B Venkateswara Rao, a former Director General of Police.
The counting process has also followed allegations by the YSRCP regarding polling procedures in Pulivendula. The party questioned the recording of 681 votes under the ‘Others’ category when the official voter list reportedly had 14 voters in that category. YSRCP president and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy met the Returning Officer and submitted a representation alleging irregularities.
Reddy also alleged that around 70 YSRCP polling agents were not allowed to enter polling booths. He sought the Returning Officer’s intervention and later staged a sit-in outside the office, demanding action on the allegations. The report did not indicate a final ruling on those claims.
Officials are continuing the counting process at designated centres, while the postponed Chirala count is scheduled for November 6. The final outcome across the state’s urban local bodies will determine the composition of municipal councils and corporations and the leadership of their civic administrations.
