BMC Mayor Post: On January 16, Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena won the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) 2026 elections. The writing was on the walls for Uddhay Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) but then Uddhav mentioned that the Mayor position would still be of his party much to everyone’s surprise.

Now comes the big question – Will God’s will bless Uddhav Thackeray with BMC Mayor Post on Thursday? The answer is – it can be a possibility. And this would mean that even after winning the BMC Elections 2026, BJP-led Mahayuti may still NOT have its Mayor.

BMC Mayor Post-The Numbers Games

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has a combined strength of 227 contractors and the majority mark is set at 114.

The total strength of BJP and Eknath Shinde Shiv Sena is 118, which is 4 more than the majority mark. In contrast, the total strength of Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS (of Raj Thackeray) is 71. However, numbers alone would not decide the Mayor position this time.

The Real Twist

Mayors in the state of Maharashtra are elected by corporators. The position of BMC Mayor is subject to reservation by rotation. On this Thursday (January 22), it would be the lottery determining the category for which the post would be reserved, such as women, general, SC, ST or OBC.

Previously, the BMC Mayor was of the General Category. This means that the BMC Mayor 2026 cannot be of the General category this time. This means, the BMC Mayor can only be drawn from one of the following categories:

• ST (Man/Woman)
• OBC (Man/Woman)
• SC (Man/Woman)

The BJP-led Mahayuti alliance would win the Mayor position hands down if the position gets reserved by lottery for the SC or OBC Category.

Now comes the interesting part. If the lottery system goes in favour of ST, the Mahayuti has no ST candidates who won the elections. Only 2 ST candidates have won the BMC Elections 2026 and both of them are from Uddhav Thackeray’s party: Jitendra Valvi (Shiv Sena-UBT) from Ward 53 and Priyadarshini Thackeray (Shiv Sena-UBT) from Ward 121.

All in all, a Thursday ST lottery win would mean that the BMC Mayor would be from Uddhav Thackeray’s party, and not from BJP and Eknath Shinde’s party.

Potential Challenges

Theoretically, disqualifications or defections could open new doors. However, anti-defection laws (10th Schedule) bar floor-crossing without party consent. Under BMC Rules, category eligibility is determined at election time. This would mean that even the numerical edge of BJP would prove irrelevant if the lottery system comes in favour of a ST candidate for the BMC Mayor position.