Andhra Pradesh State Election Commission

The Andhra Pradesh State Election Commission is the body that directs, controls and conducts elections to rural and urban local bodies in Andhra Pradesh. It was established on 17 June 1994 under the Andhra Pradesh Panchayat Raj Act, 1994, and draws its powers from Articles 243-K and 243-ZA of the Constitution of India. Its headquarters are in Vijayawada.

The Governor of Andhra Pradesh appoints the State Election Commissioner on the state government’s recommendation. The current commissioner is Anil Chandra Punetha, a retired IAS officer. The commission builds ward-wise rolls from the Assembly electoral rolls and issues an election notification once the state government has completed delimitation and reservation. It conducts direct elections to Zilla Parishad and Mandal Parishad territorial constituencies, to Gram Panchayat sarpanches and ward members, and to municipal corporation, municipality and Nagar Panchayat bodies.

The commission is in the news in November 2026. It announced that 23 urban local bodies, made up of four municipal corporations and 19 municipalities and nagar panchayats, will vote on 26 November, and that gram panchayat elections will follow in three phases, IANS reported.

Sources: Wikipedia, Andhra Pradesh State Election Commission, Telangana Today (IANS)