The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)–Shiv Sena-led Mahayuti alliance has registered a historic victory in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, bringing an end to the Thackeray family’s 28-year-long dominance over Mumbai’s civic body. With this win, Mumbai is set to get a BJP–Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) mayor after a long gap, marking a major political shift in Maharashtra’s capital.

According to the latest trends and results, the BJP has emerged as the single largest party in the BMC. Under the leadership of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, the BJP has surpassed its previous best performance of 82 seats achieved in the 2017 elections. This time, the party has won or is leading in 90 of the 227 wards of the BMC so far. Its ally, the Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde, is ahead in 28 seats. Together, the alliance has comfortably crossed the halfway mark of 114 seats required to control Asia’s richest civic body.

Following the BJP’s strong showing, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has emerged as the central figure of the victory. The results are being seen as a validation of his leadership and strategy in Mumbai, where the BJP has steadily expanded its footprint over the years. The alliance’s performance also highlights the BJP’s growing dominance in urban Maharashtra, particularly in the financial capital.

The victory of the BJP–Shiv Sena alliance has effectively ended the long-standing control of the Thackerays over the BMC. For nearly three decades, the Shiv Sena under the Thackeray family had ruled the Mumbai civic body, making it one of their strongest political bases. This election, however, has significantly altered that equation.

At the same time, the results have also brought attention to the challenges faced by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in holding on to the traditional Shiv Sena voter base in Mumbai. Despite the fact that a majority of the undivided Shiv Sena’s 84 corporators elected in 2017 had sided with Shinde after the party split, his faction has managed to barely cross the 30-seat mark in the current elections. This shows that while the alliance has benefited the BJP greatly, Shinde’s Shiv Sena continues to struggle to fully reclaim the party’s old stronghold.

Reacting to the BMC results, Eknath Shinde praised Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance. Speaking to India Today, Shinde said the verdict of the Mumbai civic body elections was a mandate for “development” and against “corruption.” He further added that the BMC results were also a positive vote for the performance of the Mahayuti government over the last three-and-a-half years since it came to power in Maharashtra.

When asked about which party would get the post of the new BMC mayor, Shinde chose not to give a direct answer. He said, “It will be someone from the Mahayuti,” avoiding any clarification on whether the mayor would be from the BJP or the Shiv Sena.

On the other side, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena has put up a weaker performance compared to previous elections. The party is winning or leading in at least 63 seats so far, a significant drop from the 84 seats won by the undivided Shiv Sena in 2017. Despite this decline, the results indicate that the Thackeray legacy in Mumbai politics is not entirely finished. Even after losing the party symbol and a section of its cadre, Uddhav Thackeray’s faction continues to retain a noticeable presence in the city.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra minister and BJP leader Nitesh Rane described the alliance’s strong showing as a clear endorsement of its campaign narrative. On Friday, reacting to the early trends, Rane said the BJP and Shiv Sena’s performance in the Mumbai civic polls reflected a strong mandate for their Hindutva pitch during the campaign. He shared his reaction on social media in Hindi, writing, “Jo Hindu ki baat karega wo Maharashra pe raj karenga (Those who speak for Hindu interests will rule Maharashtra.),” followed by “Jai Shri Ram.”

Rane’s remarks came at a time when the BJP and its ally Shiv Sena had already crossed the halfway mark in the high-stakes BMC contest, leading in more than 114 of the 227 wards as the counting of votes progressed.

Overall, the BMC election results underline a major political transition in Mumbai. While the BJP has consolidated its position as the dominant force in the civic body, the Shiv Sena factions both Shinde-led and Thackeray-led face the challenge of redefining their roles in the city’s changing political landscape.