Counting of votes in Andhra Pradesh's rural local body elections began at 8 a.m. on Saturday, 7 November 2026, and early results favoured the ruling TDP-led alliance. The polls to Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituencies (MPTCs) and Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituencies (ZPTCs) were held on 5 November and recorded an overall turnout of 70.72 percent, according to the State Election Commission. With counting still under way, the final tally is not yet clear, but the trend is giving the TDP, Jana Sena and BJP alliance a second consecutive local body win after urban polls earlier this week.
The case that the alliance is riding strong support is backed by both rounds of elections. In the urban local body polls held on 1 November and counted on 3 November, the alliance won all 32 wards in Kuppam, the home constituency of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, all 36 in Macherla, 38 of 44 in Yemmiganur and 31 of 36 in both Narasapuram and Palasa-Kasibugga, according to The South First. On Saturday the TDP won the Pulivendula ZPTC seat by 1,463 votes, as reported by Deccan Chronicle, and was leading in 14 of the first 20 ZPTCs where postal ballots were counted in Vizianagaram district, according to The Hindu. Turnout of 70.72 percent in the rural round, against 62.16 percent in the urban round, suggests voters took part in large numbers.
The opposition says the numbers hide how the vote was conducted. The YSRCP alleged that its polling agents were forced out of booths in Prakasam and other districts, that bogus votes were cast and that voters were blocked, and in several villages its leaders announced boycotts, according to The South First. The party also protested at the Hindupuram counting centre on Saturday, leading to a scuffle with police. Beyond the polling day, 77 ZPTC and 2,051 MPTC seats had already been filled unanimously before a single ballot was cast, so a large number of contests never took place. State Election Commissioner Anil Chandra Punetha has said that polling was peaceful across the state, and a district collector told reporters that counting was proceeding smoothly in a peaceful atmosphere. A 28-year-old Jana Sena MPTC contestant, Garapati Divya, died of cardiac arrest in East Godavari district a few hours before counting began.
The result matters for politics well beyond the villages. A total of 2.61 crore voters were eligible at 31,460 polling stations, and for the count the State Election Commission arranged 365 centres and 9,062 counting tables, while about 19,885 police officers were deployed because of the likelihood of violence between cadres of the major parties. Elections to 23 more municipalities are still to be scheduled, so the alliance will face voters again, and the YSRCP's complaints will be tested before the Election Commission and the courts.
The TDP-led alliance has begun the count in a commanding position and the YSRCP is contesting the way the vote was conducted. Final results will show how large the margin is, and whether the allegations of rigging go anywhere.
Leave a Reply