In Fight For Bal Thackeray's Legacy, Raj Thackeray's Son Amit Falls Behind; Uddhav Sena Ahead
Maharashtra Election Results: In Mahim, Maharashtra, Amit Thackeray (MNS) trails after initial vote counting, while Uddhav Sena's Mahesh Swant was leading.
Mahim Assembly Election Result: Raj Thackeray's son Amit Thackeray is trailing in Maharashtra's Mahim seat after 1.5 hours of vote counting. At 9:30 AM, the BJP was leading on 154 seats in Maharashtra, while the Congress and its MVA allies were ahead only on 91 seats.
The Mahim Assembly constituency carries the 'Thackeray family' legacy, as such this has emerged as the most important seat for the Shiv Sena and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena over the years. Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena is leading on the seat, with Mahesh Sawant hoping to reclaim Balasaheb's legacy for the Shiv Sena founder's son.
Mahim is the birthplace of Bal Thackeray's Shiv Sena, where the slogan "Awaz konecha — Shiv Senecha [Whose voice is it — Shiv Sena's]" thundered through the streets. The original Shiv Sena now lies fractured into three constituents, the MNS, the Uddhav Thackeray, and the Eknath Shinde camp.
This year, too, the focus is on the constituency, for several reasons. First, this was the debut election for MNS chief Raj Thackeray's son Amit Thackeray. Second, it was one of the 26 "friendly fight" seats where the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the BJP faced off over support to Amit. Eventually, the Shiv Sena fielded Sada Sarvankar while the BJP chose to support Amit Thackeray against Sarvankar.
The Maharashtra Assembly elections for all 288 seats were held in a single phase on November 20. Both Mahayuti and the Mahavikas Aghadi launched fierce campaigns against one another.
This was one of the most crucial elections in the history of Maharashtra's assembly as it follows two years of political turmoil. Two of the biggest parties in the state, the Shiv Sena and the NCP, split after surprising rebellions by the leaders closest to the chiefs of the respective parties. Both Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar were shell-shocked after their aides Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar orchestrated rebellions to secure the CM and Deputy CM's seats, respectively. While the Shiv Sena split in 2022, the NCP split in 2023.
In this election, the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance sought to maintain its hold on power, while the opposition coalition, Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), aimed to build on its recent successes in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra.
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