Maharashtra minister and Shiv Sena candidate from Ratnagiri, Uday Samant, was declared winner against Shiv Sena (UBT) 's Bal Mane.
After 26 of 26 rounds of counting, Samant has secured over 1,11,000 votes, winning by around 42,000 against Mane. A close aide of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Samant previously won the seat on the undivided Shiv Sena ticket.
Mane, formerly with the BJP, joined the Uddhav Thackeray faction to contest this election. BSP’s Bharat Sitaram Pawar and five independent candidates are also in the fray.
Ratnagiri recorded a 63 per cent voter turnout in the 2024 assembly elections.
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The political temperature in the region has risen following the collapse of the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Malvan, Sindhudurg, on August 26. Opposition parties have called for throwing the Mahayuti out of power, blaming the incident on corruption. Samant, however, denied it would hurt the ruling alliance’s chances, noting that action had been taken against those responsible.
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The proposed refinery project in Ratnagiri is also a major issue in the election. While the BJP-led government and former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had approved the refinery site in Nanar, Uddhav Thackeray’s government scrapped it and proposed a new site in Barsu. Thackeray's party, now in opposition, remains opposed to the project, with Thackeray recently stating that the MVA would not allow such projects in Konkan if it returns to power.
{{/usCountry}}The proposed refinery project in Ratnagiri is also a major issue in the election. While the BJP-led government and former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had approved the refinery site in Nanar, Uddhav Thackeray’s government scrapped it and proposed a new site in Barsu. Thackeray's party, now in opposition, remains opposed to the project, with Thackeray recently stating that the MVA would not allow such projects in Konkan if it returns to power.
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In contrast, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde defended the project, stating that it was approved by the MVA government and would only proceed with local consent.
Today’s election results is a hint how voters in Ratnagiri perceive these shifting alliances and realigned battle lines.