Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Mahesh Khinchi was elected as the new mayor of Delhi on Thursday, securing a narrow victory over Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Kishan Lal. Khinchi, a Dalit candidate, won by a slim margin of three votes, receiving 133 votes to Lal's 130. Two votes were declared invalid.
"I thank the MPs, MLAs, councillors, everyone for making me win in this election," Mahesh Kumar Khichi said after winning Delhi mayoral polls.
The Congress party’s eight councillors did not participate in the voting, having boycotted the process. The Congress had called for a full-term mayor instead of the shortened tenure now offered.
The election, which had been delayed since April due to a prolonged standoff between AAP and BJP, gave Khinchi a significant boost ahead of the Assembly elections due early next year. The counting of votes for the deputy mayor election is still ongoing.