The 2024 Haryana Assembly elections had underlined how close the contest was, with the incumbent BJP edging past the principal Opposition Congress by just 0.85 percentage points in vote share and securing 48 seats against the latter’s 37 in the 90-member House. The recent municipal polls seem to have reinforced the BJP’s grip on the state’s urban electorate. The results of the urban local body elections, declared on May 13, saw the BJP winning not only the three municipal corporations – in Panchkula , Ambala, and Sonipat – but also three smaller municipalities, leaving only Uklana where the Congress and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD)-backed independent Reema Soni defeated the BJP’s candidate for the post of the civic body’s president. The margins in the mayoral contests were striking, ranging from 21,000 to 36,000 votes, and the BJP’s dominance extended to the ward level as well, winning 17 seats in Panchkula, 16 in Ambala, and 17 in Sonipat, where the Congress was reduced to 1, 3, and 5, respectively.…