523 candidates in fray for Nagaland urban local body elections

KOHIMA: Nagaland is gearing up for its urban local body elections scheduled for June 26, with a total of 523 candidates vying for positions across various municipalities and town councils.

The Nagaland State Election Commission (SEC) released the final list of contestants on June 19.

The Dimapur Municipal Council (DMC) in Nagaland has the highest number of candidates, with 56 individuals contesting across 23 wards.

Notably, candidates in Ward 5 and Ward 15 have already been declared elected unopposed.

Following Dimapur, the Kohima Municipal Council (KMC) has 35 candidates competing in 19 wards.

In Kohima, five wards (1, 2, 8, 11, and 15) saw candidates elected unopposed.

Across Nagaland, 64 wards have uncontested candidates, automatically securing their positions without the need for a vote.

The Chiephobozou Town Council tops this list with all nine wards uncontested. Tuli Town Council has six uncontested wards, while KMC and Mokokchung Town Council each have five.

Party-wise, the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) leads with 45 uncontested candidates.

Its alliance partner, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has seven uncontested candidates.

The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has five, the Congress has three, and both the Naga People’s Front and independent candidates have two each.

Nagaland hosts three municipal councils and 36 town councils.

However, electoral activities in Eastern Nagaland have been disrupted, as all 61 candidates in urban local bodies (ULBs) in the region withdrew their nominations following a poll abstention call by the Eastern Nagaland People’s Organisation.

This effectively halts the electoral process in six districts of Eastern Nagaland.

Overall, 79 candidates have withdrawn from the election race from an initial 669 candidates as of June 11.

This election marks Nagaland’s first civic polls in two decades and is set to take place on June 26.