Andhra Pradesh Holds Direct Elections for 92 Urban Local Bodies
Andhra Pradesh began polling for mayors, chairpersons, and ward members across 92 urban local bodies on November 1 under heightened security measures.
The Government of Andhra Pradesh began urban local body elections on November 1, 2026, covering 13 municipal corporations and 79 municipalities and nagar panchayats. Following the passage of the Andhra Pradesh Municipal Laws (Fourth Amendment) Bill, 2026, voters are directly electing mayors and chairpersons for the first time. The contest includes 153 mayoral candidates for 804 ward seats in corporations, and 70 chairperson posts for 2,382 wards in municipalities and nagar panchayats, though eight local bodies were declared unanimous before voting began.
Polling opened at 7 a.m. and is scheduled to conclude at 5 p.m. State Election Commissioner Anil Chandra Punetha is overseeing the process, which utilizes CCTV cameras and drones to prevent violence. Security was tightened at over 11,000 polling stations, with 142 categorized as critical, 7,070 as sensitive, and 4,262 as hypersensitive following violent incidents during the nomination phase.
In Visakhapatnam, voters in the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation are using pink ballots for mayoral candidates and white ballots for ward members. Regional officials across North Andhra, including district collectors in Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, Srikakulam, Anakapalle, and Parvathipuram Manyam, managed the deployment of personnel and surveillance. Authorities are monitoring for Model Code of Conduct violations, with any necessary repolling scheduled for November 2.
