Rahuri Bypoll 2026: BJP’s Akshay Kardile Wins by Over 1.12 Lakh Votes, Retains Family Bastion

Akshay Kardile of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) registered an emphatic win in the Rahuri Assembly by-election, defeating Govind Mokate of the Nationalist Congress Party–Sharadchandra Pawar (NCP-SP) by a massive margin of 1,12,587 votes. From the opening round of counting, including postal ballots, Kardile remained comfortably ahead and maintained the lead throughout all 27 rounds. He secured a total of 1,40,093 votes, while Mokate managed 27,506 votes. The result highlighted the BJP’s dominance in the constituency and reinforced the party’s strong organisational presence in the Ahilyanagar region during the high-profile by-election contest.

A total of seven candidates contested the by-election, though the main battle remained between the BJP and NCP-SP nominees. Santosh Eknath Cholake of Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) secured 5,690 votes by the final round of counting. Independent candidate Raosaheb Sadaram Kheware received 7,299 votes. The by-election was necessitated after the demise of sitting BJP MLA Shivaji Kardile last year. Seeking to preserve the family’s political influence in Rahuri, the BJP nominated his son, Akshay Kardile, who successfully retained the seat considered a traditional stronghold of the Kardile family for several years.

Following his victory, Akshay Kardile credited the result to the goodwill and confidence earned by his late father during more than three decades of public service. He stated that voters had now placed similar trust in him as he prepared to represent the constituency in the Assembly for the first time. Initially, the BJP had hoped the election would be uncontested. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had appealed to opposition parties to honour the political convention often followed after the death of a sitting legislator. However, once the contest became inevitable, the BJP launched a full-scale campaign across the constituency to secure a decisive mandate.

The electoral battle became less challenging for the BJP after Prajakt Tanpure, considered a strong rival, opted out of the race following discussions with BJP leaders. Senior politicians, including Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil and Sangram Jagtap, campaigned extensively for Akshay Kardile during the by-election. Jagtap, who is also Kardile’s brother-in-law, is regarded as an influential figure in the region. The Rahuri Assembly constituency covers parts of Rahuri, Ahilyanagar, and Pathardi tehsils. BJP leaders said strong backing from villages in Pathardi tehsil significantly boosted Kardile’s performance. With this victory, the BJP has retained a strategically important seat in Ahilyanagar district, while the opposition suffered another setback in the region.