What the MLC elections tell us and what they don’t tell us

A set of photographs of scarves of various political parties on display in a shop in Mumbai. | Photo credit: EMMANUAL YOGINI

Discussions highlight that too much emphasis is placed on this recent Legislative Council elections (MLC elections) across states. Even if a party has swept the elections or been completely swept away, it does not mean that it is losing or gaining popular support. This is because the voters in these elections are only a part of the electorate, which is different from the ongoing general and parliamentary elections. That’s just a fraction of the electorate that decides the assembly in a state with more than seven million registered voters.

Across Uttar Pradesh, 11 constituencies filed for election, while Bihar saw eight seats contested, Maharashtra and Karnataka saw five and four constituencies respectively.

Published – 29 Oct 2026 16:52 IST