The Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) on Tuesday announced its third list of candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, focusing on key constituencies. In a move that caught attention, the VBA decided not to contest the Baramati Parliamentary Constituency but instead back the Nationalist Congress Party's (Sharad Pawar faction) candidate Supriya Sule.
VBA has announced Vasant More as the candidate for the Pune Constituency in the upcoming elections. Other nominees include Avinash Bosikar from Nanded, Balasaheb B. Ugale from Parbhani, Afsar Khan from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, and Mangaldas Bagul from Shirur.
Maharashtra Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Schedule, Dates, and Key Details
The elections in Maharashtra, the Indian state with the second-highest number of Lok Sabha seats, will be conducted in five phases from April 19 to May 20. The results are scheduled to be declared on June 4. Maharashtra holds 48 seats out of the total 543 seats up for election nationwide, ranking second after Uttar Pradesh, which has 80 seats.
Here are the key details of the Maharashtra Lok Sabha Elections 2024:
- Election Phases:
- Phase 1 (April 19): Ramtek (SC), Nagpur, Bhandara-Gondiya, Gadchiroli-Chimur (ST), Chandrapur
- Phase 2 (April 26): Buldhana, Akola, Amravati, Wardha, Yavatmal-Washim, Hingoli, Nanded, Parbhani
- Phase 3 (May 7): Raigad, Baramati, Osmanabad, Latur (SC), Solapur (SC), Madha, Sangli, Satara, Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, Kolhapur, Hatkanangle
- Phase 4 (May 13): Nandurbar (ST), Jalgaon, Raver, Jalna, Aurangabad, Maval, Pune, Shirur, Ahmednagar, Shirdi (SC), Beed
- Phase 5 (May 20): Dhule, Dindori (ST), Nashik, Palghar (ST), Bhiwandi, Kalyan, Thane, Mumbai North, Mumbai North-West, Mumbai North-East, Mumbai North-Central, Mumbai South-Central, Mumbai South
The political landscape in Maharashtra has witnessed significant shifts in alliances and party dynamics since 2014. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led NDA alliance came to power at the Centre in 2014, leading to changes in state politics. In the 2014 Legislative Assembly elections, a coalition between Shiv Sena and BJP secured the most seats, forming the ruling government.
Before 2014, Maharashtra was predominantly governed by a coalition comprising the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Indian National Congress (INC).