MLC election results 2026 counting began at 8am on Tuesday for 28 Legislative Council seats across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra and Karnataka, with authorities deploying tight security, CCTV surveillance and trained counting staff at centres across the four states. The elections cover graduates’ and teachers’ constituencies, whose representatives form part of the legislative institutions overseeing public policy and administration.
In Bihar, counting is under way for eight seats, including four graduates’ constituencies in Patna, Darbhanga, Tirhut and Kosi, and four teachers’ constituencies in Patna, Darbhanga, Tirhut and Saran. A total of 150 candidates are contesting: 90 in the graduates’ constituencies and 60 in the teachers’ constituencies. Polling on October 23 recorded turnout of 82.85% in the teachers’ constituencies and 53.42% in the graduates’ seats.
The four graduates’ constituencies had 4.92 lakh eligible voters, while the four teachers’ constituencies had 40,253 electors. Counting centres include Bankipur Government Girls’ Senior Secondary School in Patna, Khel Bhawan-cum-Vyayamshala Bhawan in Darbhanga and the MIT administrative block in Muzaffarpur, which is handling both Tirhut seats. The BJP has fielded candidates for four seats and its ally JD(U) is contesting the remaining four. The Jan Suraaj Party is contesting all eight seats. The terms of the eight sitting Bihar MLCs are due to end on November 16.
A commotion was reported at the Bankipur counting centre in Patna after a government employee was seen carrying a bundle of files into the counting hall. Reporters and candidate supporters questioned the employee, following which police personnel intervened and asked him to place the files on the ground. The supplied report does not identify the contents of the files or indicate that the incident affected the counting process.
Uttar Pradesh is counting votes for 11 seats, comprising five graduates’ and six teachers’ constituencies. The constituencies include Lucknow, Varanasi, Agra, Meerut and Allahabad-Jhansi among the graduates’ seats, and Lucknow, Varanasi, Agra, Meerut, Bareilly-Moradabad and Gorakhpur-Faizabad among the teachers’ seats. Authorities have arranged four-tier security at counting centres, with around 400 police personnel assigned to each of two 12-hour shifts. Drone teams, mounted police and mobile squads have also been deployed.
Uttar Pradesh chief electoral officer Navdeep Rinwa directed returning officers to maintain uninterrupted power supply, CCTV surveillance and videography, restrict entry to authorised personnel and keep reserve staff available. The use of proportional representation through the single transferable vote system can make counting more time-consuming than conventional elections, officials said.
In Maharashtra, 182 candidates are contesting five seats across three graduates’ and two teachers’ constituencies. The seats have 10,68,072 registered voters, and polling recorded an overall turnout of 72.96%. Amravati teachers’ constituency recorded the highest turnout at 92.6%, followed by Pune teachers’ at 85.86%, Nagpur graduates’ at 64.84%, Pune graduates’ at 62.76% and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar graduates’ at 59.12%.
The contests include a challenge by BJP candidate Sudhakar Kohale against sitting Congress MLC Abhijit Wanjarri in Nagpur, while Pune graduates’ constituency has 47 candidates. The results are being watched for their implications for the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance and the Maha Vikas Aghadi amid rebel candidates and competing alliance interests. Preferential voting means that subsequent preferences may be required if no candidate reaches the quota on first preferences.
Karnataka is counting votes for four Legislative Council seats covering 17 districts. Counting for the West Graduates’ Constituency began at the University of Agricultural Sciences in Dharwad. The constituency covers Dharwad, Haveri, Gadag and Uttara Kannada and recorded 75.6% turnout, with 73,658 of 97,400 registered voters casting ballots. Fourteen candidates are contesting the seat, and counting is being conducted across 14 tables. Officials said the final result could take several rounds under the preferential voting system.
