Congress falls short of a majority as Shiv Sena rises
What happened
Congress remained Maharashtra's largest party but fell short of a majority.
The Indian National Congress won 141 of the 288 seats on offer, a hung result — a result where no single party wins enough seats to govern alone.
Its nearest rival, the Shiv Sena, won 52 seats.
What changed
The biggest story of this election was how quickly one opposition party grew, overtaking every party except Congress.
32 seats swung directly from INC to SHS, the single biggest shift of the election.
The SHS's vote share — the slice of all ballots cast that went to one party or candidate — rose to 15.9%.
Notable numbers
A few numbers from this election stand out.
The tightest finish was at Nagpur Central, Maharashtra, decided by a margin — how far ahead the winner finished, in votes, over whoever came second — of just 6 votes.
At the other extreme, Baramati, Maharashtra saw the widest margin of the year, 75.1% of the vote separating the top two finishers.
Turnout — the share of registered voters who actually cast a ballot — peaked at Matunga, Maharashtra, reaching 95.0%.
The most crowded contest was Aurangabad West, Maharashtra, where 43 candidates stood for one seat.
The backdrop
By this election, Maharashtra's opposition looked different from the one Congress had faced through the previous decade, with a new regional party emerging as its most serious rival.