Congress Dominates Telangana Civic Bodies, Leads in Wards and Vote Share

The results of the recent Telangana municipal elections have reinforced the Congress party’s growing dominance in the state and provided Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy with a strong political endorsement midway through his tenure. Polling was held in 112 municipalities (out of 116 notified) and seven municipal corporations , and the outcome is being viewed as a consolidation of Congress influence across urban local bodies while reshaping Telangana’s political trajectory.

Congress secured a decisive lead in ward representation , winning well over 1,300 of the 2,582 municipal wards contested. The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) followed with roughly 700-plus wards , while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won around 260 wards . In terms of vote share , Congress polled about 39% , BRS 28–29% , and BJP 15–16% , with other parties and independents accounting for the remaining 16–18% . Despite Congress’ lead, about three dozen municipalities returned hung councils , making independents crucial in post-poll alignments.

Among the seven corporations, Congress secured clear victories in Ramagundam, Mahabubnagar, Mancherial and Nalgonda . Nizamabad tilted toward the BJP, while Karimnagar and Kothagudem delivered fractured mandates. In Karimnagar, the BJP, with 30 wards in the 66-member corporation , moved closer to the mayoral post after securing support from independents and smaller parties. The ex-officio voting eligibility of Union Minister of State for Home Bandi Sanjay Kumar further strengthens the BJP’s position. In Kothagudem, Congress and CPI won 22 wards each in the 60-member corporation, placing the Left party in a pivotal role and making a Congress–CPI alliance the most likely governing arrangement.

Voter turnout was estimated at about 73% , higher than the 2023 Assembly elections (71.3%) and the 2024 Lok Sabha polls (64–66%) , underscoring strong civic engagement. Municipal elections typically see higher participation because local issues such as roads, sanitation, drainage and water supply directly affect daily life.

The municipal verdict also reflects a broader political evolution in Telangana since state formation. In the 2014 Assembly election , Congress polled about 25% , while the then TRS (now BRS) secured around 34% and the BJP about 7% . TRS dominance peaked in the 2018 Assembly election (46.9% vote share) and the 2019 Lok Sabha polls , where it secured about 41.7% , compared with Congress’ 29.5% and BJP’s 19.5% . However, the political landscape shifted sharply in the 2023 Assembly election , where Congress rose to ~39.4% to form the government, BRS secured ~37.3% but lost power, and BJP improved to ~13.9% .

The trend continued in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections , where Congress surged to ~40–41% , the BJP climbed to ~35% , and BRS declined sharply to ~16–17% . The 2026 municipal polls show Congress consolidating its vote share at about 39% , while BRS slowly regaining its vote share to ~30% level.