With the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena not nominating its candidate, this is probably the first time the party’s iconic bow and arrow symbol is not being seen in the constituency, where the famous Parel area is located that gave Shiv Sena its first-ever MLA in 1970, Wamanrao Mahadik.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a major stakeholder in the ruling Mahayuti, which also includes Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), has extended support to the MNS candidate in the polls.
During the 1990s, Nandgaonkar came into the limelight when he defeated Chhagan Bhujbal, who quit the undivided Shiv Sena to join the Congress. However, Nandgaonkar left the Shiv Sena nearly a decade later when Raj Thackeray parted ways with Uddhav Thackeray and quit the party.
In 2009, Nandgaonkar secured a win from the Shivadi seat but lost to Ajay Choudhari in 2014. Choudhari retained the seat in the 2019 polls as well.
During the last Assembly election in Maharashtra, the BJP bagged 105 of the 288, while the then undivided Shiv Sena got 56 seats. The Congress and NCP ended up at 44 and 54 seats, respectively.
Despite the clear majority, the BJP and Shiv Sena alliance fell apart over the Chief Minister’s post, resulting in the formation of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).
The Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA government collapsed after the Eknath Shinde-led camp rebelled against the Shiv Sena in June 2022, leading to an unprecedented split in the party. In July last year, the NCP saw a similar situation when Ajit Pawar parted ways with his uncle Sharad Pawar and joined the ruling Mahayuti.
Shivadi: Polling Date
Voting for the 2024 Assembly election in Maharashtra is scheduled for November 20. All the 288 seats in the state, including Shivadi, will vote in a single phase, while the results will be out on November 23.
Shivadi: Candidates List
Seven candidates are in the fray for the Shivadi seat in the 2024 Assembly polls in Maharashtra.
| Candidate Names | Party |
| Ajay Choudhari | Shiv Sena (UBT) |
| Bala Nandgaonkar | Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) |
| Madan Khale | Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) |
| Milind Kamble | Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi |
| Mohan Waidande | Swabhimani Paksha |
| Dr Anagha Chhatrapati | Independent |
| Sanjay Ambole | Independent |
2019 result
In 2019, Ajay Choudhari of the Shiv Sena defeated MNS’ Santosh Nalawade by 39,337 votes.
| Candidate Names | Party | Votes |
| Ajay Choudhari | Shiv Sena | 77,687 (57.27%) |
| Santosh Nalawade | MNS | 38,350 (28.27%) |
| NOTA | – | 4,308 (3.18%) |
