After historic urban localbody sweep, TDP-Led NDA sets sights on rural supremacy in MPTC & ZPTC polls. The urban local body elections in Andhra Pradesh turned into a landslide for the NDA—TDP, Jana Sena, and BJP together swept nearly every major city. Voting for 100 urban local bodies (13 Municipal Corporations and 87 Municipalities/Nagar Panchayats) took place on November 1, with vote counting following on November 3.
They took control in big municipal corporations like Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Guntur, and Tirupati, and grabbed solid majorities in almost all municipalities and nagar panchayats. Pulivendula, which the YSRCP had held for years, flipped dramatically: the TDP candidate won the chairperson spot by over 13,000 votes. Visakhapatnam’s mayoral race was another standout—Mukka Sravani won by about 2.5 lakh votes, a stunning margin. Jana Sena’s candidates picked up crucial posts, such as the chairmanship in Pithapuram. Meanwhile, the YSRCP was left with only a handful of wins. Ananthapuram Corporation, Bethamcherla municipality and a few nail-biter contests were all they managed. Their party chief, Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, fired back, accusing the ruling coalition of using government machinery to twist the elections into a foregone conclusion.
Minister Nara Lokesh termed the verdict a "mandate to serve, not to celebrate," characterizing it as the public’s endorsement of the coalition's governance. YSRCP Chief Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy alleged large-scale electoral malpractices, claiming the polls were "selections, not elections" rather than a fair contest, and called for comprehensive electoral reforms following clashes in segments like Pulivendula.
Crucial Parishad Polls
Now, everyone’s focus moves to the rural elections—MPTC (7844) and ZPTC (582)—which are set for November 5. The elections commission had first scheduled rural voting for November 3, but moved it to the 5th to avoid chaos from overlapping urban vote counts. November 4 becomes prep day for setting up polling stations and handling last-minute logistics, and the state declared holidays for schools and offices involved in voting across all mandals.
This rural round is huge. More than 46,000 candidates are on the ballot for 9,829 MPTC segments, and around 4,770 are fighting for 659 ZPTC seats. The state isn’t taking any chances: heavy police presence, sector magistrates, micro-observers, and webcasting are all in place, hoping to keep things calm after the scuffles seen during the urban round. If a repoll’s needed, it happens on November 6. Then, on November 7 at 8:00 AM, the ballot counting begins. That’s when winners will be announced, setting the stage for picking Mandal Parishad Presidents and Zilla Parishad Chairpersons through indirect elections.