Rajasthan Civic Polls 2026: BJP Leads Across Urban Bodies as EVM Glitches Delay Results in Kota and Other Cities

BJP Emerges as the Largest Party

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has emerged as the single largest party in Rajasthan’s 2026 urban local body elections.

Elections were held across 309 urban local bodies, covering 10 municipal corporations, 47 municipal councils and 252 municipalities. Voting took place in two phases on September 9 and September 11, followed by counting on September 14.

According to the latest figures, the BJP won 4,179 wards, while Congress won 3,613. Independents also performed strongly, winning 2,273 wards, making them an important factor in several local bodies where neither major party has a clear majority.

BJP Gets Majority in Kota

Kota emerged as one of the BJP's major successes.

The BJP secured 55 of the 100 wards in the Kota Municipal Corporation, crossing the majority mark. Congress won 40 wards, while Independents secured three seats.

This means the BJP has already crossed the basic majority requirement in Kota. However, the complete result was affected by technical problems involving EVMs in some wards.

EVM Glitches Delay Results

During counting, EVM-related technical problems affected several polling stations.

In Kota, results from three wards were delayed because the concerned EVMs could not be opened/read during the counting process. Earlier reports identified the affected Kota wards as 11, 44 and 87.

The State Election Commission subsequently ordered re-polling at affected polling stations where the number of votes involved was greater than the victory margin between candidates.

Importantly, the issue was not limited to Kota. A total of 10 polling stations across Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kota and Suket were affected.

Affected areas include:

• Jaipur Municipal Corporation — 5 polling stations
• Jodhpur Municipal Corporation — 1 polling station
• Kota Municipal Corporation — 3 polling stations
• Suket Municipality — 1 polling station

Re-Polling on September 16

The State Election Commission has scheduled re-polling on September 16, 2026, from 7 AM to 6 PM at the affected polling stations.

Counting of votes from the re-polling is scheduled for September 17 from 8 AM.

Because of the affected results, elections for some chairperson and vice-chairperson posts in the concerned urban local bodies were also postponed until the pending results are completed.

Why Did the EVM Issue Happen?

According to Rajasthan State Election Commissioner Rajeshwar Singh, the affected EVMs were old machines sourced from the Election Commission of India.

The commission said some machines were around 13 years old and in worn condition. The State Election Commission had reportedly proposed purchasing new EVMs, but the proposal was not approved.

However, the election authorities' decision to conduct re-polling is based on the impact of the malfunction on the affected results, rather than treating the entire election as invalid.

BJP's Performance Across Rajasthan

The BJP's performance was not limited to Kota.

The party secured majorities in several important municipal corporations, including:

• Jaipur
• Kota
• Udaipur
• Bhilwara

The BJP also remained ahead in several other urban bodies.

In Jaipur Municipal Corporation, the BJP secured 78 of 150 wards, crossing the majority mark.

At the same time, Congress performed strongly in some areas. It secured a majority in Bikaner and remained competitive in places such as Ajmer and Pali.

Independents Become Important

One of the biggest takeaways from the Rajasthan civic polls is the strong performance of Independent candidates.

With more than 2,200 ward victories, Independents have become important in several urban local bodies where BJP or Congress did not win a clear majority. In such places, independent councillors could play a key role in determining who forms the local board.

Political Significance

The civic poll results are significant for both BJP and Congress because urban local bodies directly influence local issues such as:

• Roads and infrastructure
• Cleanliness and waste management
• Water supply
• Street lighting
• Local development
• Municipal services

The results also provide an indication of the political mood in Rajasthan ahead of the 2028 Assembly elections, although civic elections should not automatically be treated as a direct prediction of future Assembly results.

What Happens Next?

The immediate focus is now on the affected polling stations.

September 16: Re-polling at 10 affected polling stations.

September 17: Counting of votes from the re-polling.

After the pending results are completed, the authorities can move ahead with the remaining chairperson and vice-chairperson elections in the affected urban bodies.

Conclusion

The Rajasthan civic election results have given the BJP a strong position across several major urban centres, with particularly clear victories in Jaipur, Kota, Udaipur and Bhilwara. However, the strong performance has been accompanied by technical problems involving EVMs at 10 polling stations.

The September 16 re-polling and September 17 counting will therefore be important for completing the affected results and finalising the next stage of municipal leadership.