Surat, October 29 : Gujarat is expected to witness local body elections in February 2026, covering both the six existing municipal corporations and nine newly constituted ones. As per agency report, the State Election Commission has announced ward-wise reservations following the implementation of 27 percent OBC reservation across all civic bodies, including Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Bhavnagar, and Junagadh.
According to the latest notification issued by the State Election Commission, the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) will have a total of 30 wards comprising 120 seats. Of these, 50 percent or 60 seats have been reserved for women candidates. Out of the total 120 seats, 40 are designated for the general category, while 80 are reserved for various communities. Among the reserved seats, 3 are for Scheduled Castes, including one for a woman; 4 are for Scheduled Tribes, including two for women; and 32 are for Other Backward Classes (OBC), with 16 reserved for women. This structure ensures substantial representation for women and backward communities in the upcoming Surat civic polls.
As per the Commission’s data, the population of Surat, based on the 2011 Census, stands at 46,45,384. The city has been divided into 30 wards with an average population of 1,54,846 per ward. Taking into account a permissible variation of ±10 percent, the population range per ward has been maintained between 1,39,361 and 1,70,331.
The State Election Commission is expected to begin the revision of the voters’ list and finalize the election notification soon. Following this, the schedule for nominations, campaigning, and polling will be announced.
Political parties have already started strategizing for the polls, as Surat Municipal Corporation is considered one of the wealthiest and politically significant local bodies in the state.
