Maharashtra election results: Who is in the fray to be the next Maharashtra CM?

It’s D-day in Maharashtra, where the political landscape is complicated with leading regional parties splitting. The ruling Mahayuti is up against the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).

As counting of votes begun at 8 pm, Mahayuti has taken lead against the MVA in the 288-seat Assembly. The ruling coalition is leading in 83 seats while the MVA is at 42, early trends show.

Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar, who is contesting from the Colaba Assembly seat, said that the Mahayuti, comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP, will win 175 seats.  So far, the MVA which has the Shiv Sena faction led by Uddhav Thackeray, Sharad Pawar’s NCP faction, and the Congress is playing the wait and watch game.

However, even if either party wins a majority, the road to the CM’s seat is a complex one. Each faction within the two main coalitions is pushing their candidates for the top post.

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We take a look at who is in the fray and the infighting.

In the Mahayuti camp, the BJP is pushing for Devendra Fadnavis while Eknath Shinde’s supporters want him to be CM. In the MVA, it is Congress vs Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray).

Who are the names in the fray for CM post?

Devendra Fadnavis (Mahayuti)

Known as a clever strategist in the BJP, Fadnavis is the front-runner for the top job.

He has been the state’s two-time CM and led the BJP’s campaign in the Assembly elections.

He was instrumental in selecting candidates and the seat-sharing talks with the NCP and Shiv Sena.

BJP leader Pravin Darekar batted for Deputy CM Fadnavis for the top post. “I think if anyone from the BJP is becoming the CM then it will be Devendra Fadnavis,” he said.

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Eknath Shinde (Mahayuti)

In June 2022, he led a rebellion in the Shiv Shena and left the party with the majority of Uddhav Thackeray’s MPs and MLAs.

However, his appointment as Maharashtra’s CM came as a surprise to many.

As per media reports, the BJP’s leadership felt that his Maratha identity would lessen the trouble caused by the community’s agitators. Soon, he won the legal battle for the real Shiv Sena.

Speaking about his potential to become Maharashtra’s next CM, Shiv Sena MLA and party spokesperson Sanjay Shirsat said the assembly elections were contested with Eknath Shinde as the face.

“Voters have shown their preference for Shinde through voting. I think it is Shinde’s right (to be the next chief minister) and we are confident that he will be the next CM,” he said.

Ajit Pawar (Mahayuti)

In Maharashtra’s political space, he has served as the four-time Deputy CM.

Ajit Pawar has been waiting for the elevation to the top seat since 2004 when his party emerged as the single largest party in that election.

However, his uncle Sharad Pawar gave up the position to the Congress in exchange for an additional cabinet seat in the UPA government.

In July 2023, after numerous differences, he spearheaded the party rebellion to become the Deputy CM in the Mahayuti government.

Like Shinde, he also won the legal battle against the NCP-SP and was given the party’s clock symbol.

NCP leader Amol Mitkari pushed the name of his party chief and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar for the coveted job. “Whatever the results, the NCP will be the kingmaker,” Mitkari said.

Several other names from the Mahayuti alliance that surfaced for the post are Pankaja Munde (BJP), Vinod Tawde (BJP), and Sudhir Mungantiwar (BJP).

Uddhav Thackeray (MVA)

Uddhav Thackeray has only been the chief minister of Maharashtra for two and a half years.

His term, however, left a sour taste in Maharashtra’s politics due to numerous controversies and troubles, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the Antilia case.

Even though Shinde’s party rebelled, he managed to win the Lok Sabha elections with his party taking nine seats, while the Shinde Sena only managed six.

When the MVA was to announce the alliance’s CM face, his party leaders argued that he should become the CM since he is the most vocal face in the state.

Nana Patole (MVA)

Another candidate for the CM’s position is the chief of the Maharashtra Congress.

He thinks the grand old party will become the Assembly’s largest party.

In 2014, Patole served as a Sakoli BJP MP before switching sides to the Congress over differences.

When the MVA administration took power, he was chosen to serve as the Assembly’s speaker.

Prithviraj Chauhan (MVA)

He is a non-controversial figure who has been active in the Congress since the time of the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Regarded as a strategist and technocrat in the party, he was the PMO’s Minister of State under previous Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The former CM is vying for the position once more, however, his senior status (age 78) might go against him.

Supriya Sule (MVA)

The daughter of Sharad Pawar has been representing Baramati in Parliament since 2009 and is currently the Working President of the NCP-SP party.

On the eve of the Maharashtra Assembly elections, she, along with Nana Patole, was accused of a Bitcoin scam in 2018.

She has refuted the claims and declared her innocence by filing a defamation complaint against BJP’s Sudhanshu Trivedi.

Jayant Patil (MVA)

NCP (SP)’s Maharashtra unit chief has represented the Islampur Assembly seat since 1990.

He is now Sharad Pawar’s party’s chief strategist and has held important positions in several governments, including those in the home and finance sectors.

Other names in the fray include Ashish Shelar (BJP), Chandrakant Patil (BJP), Aditya Thackeray (Shiv Sena-UBT), and Sunil Tatkare (NCP).

Why is there infighting?

While both alliances are confident about their mandate, a war of words has emerged over the chief ministerial face of the state just a day before votes are counted.

Patole’s assertion that the Congress will get the maximum number of seats in the new Assembly faced immediate opposition from Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut. The latter insisted the chief ministerial face will be decided by all alliance partners jointly once the MVA secures a majority.

The Rajya Sabha MP said if the Congress high command has told Patole that he will be the chief ministerial face then national party’s president Mallikarjun Kharge, and its top leaders Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra should announce the same.

Speaking to reporters, BJP leader Pravin Darekar highlighted the “internal rifts” within the MVA, saying, “The people of Maharashtra have given a clear mandate. The Chief Minister will be from the Mahayuti, not the MVA, and certainly not the Congress.”

“Congress MP Praniti Shinde and her father and former CM Sushilkumar Shinde supported an independent candidate against Uddhav Thackeray’s nominee in a constituency in Solapur district. These internal rifts expose a lack of unity. How can parties without internal coherence decide on a Chief Minister?”

He added that Patole’s aspirations to become CM was nothing but “mungerilal ke haseen sapne (daydreaming).”

Similar differences are seen in the Mahayuti alliance, with members of the Shiv Sena, BJP, and NCP batting for Eknath Shinde, Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar respectively for the hot seat.

However, when asked about the Chief Ministerial face from Mahayuti, Fadnavis maintained all three Mahayuti parties will sit together and make a “good decision.”

With inputs from agencies